Fears and Desires
by RGAP-48
Summary: -COMPLETE- Being in the wrong place at the wrong time makes Sami the serial killer's newest target. Lucas is doing everything he can to protect her while Nicole finds love in an unexpected place as she tries to prove that she is not guilty of murder.
1. Chapter One

Fears and Desires

  
  


Chapter One

  
  


Author's Note: In this story, Belle fell through the pinata and was the fifth victim instead of Cassie, which I think is the way it should have been on the show.

  
  


She swore softly under her breath, wishing she had brought her car instead of taking the bus. The rain poured down, dripping off the leather of her coat. Blonde hair clung to the sides of her face as she quickly mulled over which way to go. Her first instinct was to go around, walking along the public streets to the bus stop. But that would take too much time, she was cold and wet and wanted to go home.

The only other option was to cut through the grass field of Salem High. It would be fast but it was secluded and the idea of walking across the empty field alone made her heart thump wildly. Ever since the serial killer had taken her father's life at his own wedding, she had been more guarded, careful. Finally, she made a quick decision. She opened up her purse and pulled out a can of pepper spray. She didn't usually carry it but she felt like she had to now.

Her purse was heavier than usual, weighed down by the paperback novels in it. She had just been to the library to pick up two Harlequin romances. No one knew about her fascination with the books and she intended to keep it that way. She placed her finger on the trigger of the pepper spray bottle, preparing to use it in case of danger. The heels of her high heeled sandals were sinking into the ground, slowing her down. Her feet were numb and she finally realized how stupid it was to wear sandals in the middle of winter. Lucas had said as much but she had brushed his words away.

Rain was washing the snow away and she could make out darker patches where the snow had already dissolved into nothing. She moved ahead, cringing as lightning lit up the sky, followed by thunder. She frowned when the lightning lit up two silhouettes in front of her. Her eyes were adjusted to the lack of light and could make out the two outlines. One silhouette was crouched on the ground, his arm raising and lowering in sharp, proficient strokes. The other silhouette stood, his back turned to her as well, watching.

She walked even closer to them, then when lightning lit up the sky again, her loud gasp caused both people to turn and stare at her. In the few seconds that the lightning had illuminated the shadows, she had seen everything. The woman lying lifelessly on the ground, eyes frozen wide open, her mouth open in a silent scream and the two people turning to stare at her.

The one that had been crouched over had a long, thin object in his hand. She realized that it was a knife and began backing away. Her eyes shifted from the person with the knife, to the second person. The second person's eyes glittered icily and their lips twisted into a cold, calculating smile. She had seen that smile before and now it made her like every blood cell in her body had turned to ice.

The person with the knife advanced on her. Instinctively, she held the can out and pressed the button down. Spray hit the person's forehead and seeped into their eyes. She threw the can down, along with her purse and bolted, running as fast as she could.

"Go after her." the second person said over the first's persons pain-filled howls. She knew that, since she had not managed to spray directly into the person's eyes, she hadn't bought herself as much time as she would have liked. Her shoes were making it impossible to run as fast as she needed to, so she kicked them off and began running wildly for some escape from the killer.

She was on the concrete sidewalk now and flew by the abandoned bus stop. Everyone had ran for cover, to get out of the storm. She had to keep running, she couldn't let them kill her like they had killed her father. The sidewalk felt like sandpaper against her bare feet but she couldn't feel pain. All she could feel was fear, burning and intense. She had to get away.

Breathing became a chore as she continued running. She wouldn't look behind her but she knew they were there, slowly gaining on her. She had to get to somewhere public. It wouldn't be long before she couldn't breathe at all. Then she would have to stop, then they would catch her....

Her eyes locked onto the familiar wooden building in front of her and she sped toward it. There had to be someone she knew at the Brady Pub. She would run like hell until she got inside and then she would tell everyone what she saw. She would get the killers locked up for what they did to her father.

Her hands made contact with the door handle and she stumbled inside. Before she could come to a complete stop, she saw her Uncle Bo and Aunt Hope sitting at a table. They worked for the police, they could get the killers put behind bars. Before she could go over to them, she slid on the floor, which was slick against her wet, bleeding feet. She lost control and tumbled onto the ground, hitting her head on the back of one of the booths in the front of the pub.

Bo, Hope and everyone else who was at the Brady Pub, gathered around her. Her head was throbbing and she moaned loudly.

"They killed her." she tried to explain to them as they continued asking her if she was okay, "They were at the school. They had a knife....." everything went white at first, then a dark red and finally faded to black.

  
  


The stinging had finally stopped but now the person's eyes were stinging with anger. Through the doors of the Brady Pub, they saw a crowd gathering around her. They still couldn't believe she had outrun them. Who did she think she was?

The murder was supposed to go flawlessly, just like the rest of them had ultimately gone. They followed the young woman after she went out on the walk and attacked her once the rain had started. They were supposed to finish her off in that grass field in the storm and leave, undetected. But then she had to come along and ruin everything.

The killer hurried back in the direction of the school, knowing their partner was going to be upset that they let the woman get away.

The killer's partner met them halfway and held up a black purse. The second person's lips curled into a twisted smile.

"It's got her driver's license, her address, everything in here." the second person told their partner, not seeming very fazed that the woman had gotten away.

"She hit her head or something at the pub." the first person told them, "She's unconscious."

"Good." the second person nodded approvingly, looking in the direction of the Brady Pub, "You're dead, Samantha Gene Brady."


	2. Chapter Two

Chapter Two

  
  


The ambulance came and took Sami, who was still unconscious, away on a stretcher. Bo and Hope watched the ambulance roll down the street in the direction of the hospital.

"Do you think she'll be all right, Bo?" Hope asked, her eyes flickering with worry. Bo reached over and squeezed his wife's shoulder reassuringly.

"I'm no doctor but I think she should be fine. She might have bumped her head pretty hard in there but I think a few stitches will do the trick. Everyone knows that Sami has a hard head." Bo chuckled, he was as calm as his wife was unsettled.

"That's not all I'm worried about." Hope told him, "Did you hear the things she was saying before she was passed out? She said something about killing and mentioned a school."

"That does seem a little strange to me." Bo admitted, starting to look a little nervous himself, "Her feet were all cut up and she was really upset. I know Sami tends to exaggerate sometimes but I have a feeling that this could be serious. And she did mention a school and the closest one is Salem High, so......"

"We should go check it out." Hope finished. Bo nodded in agreement and the two of them went over to their van. Bo sped towards the school. It was dark but the rain was starting to subside, now only a light sprinkling of rain drops hit their windshield. Once they reached the school, Bo grabbed a flashlight and he and Hope began looking around the area. It was only minutes before they made their way onto the grass field and spotted the body lying in the field.

Bo and Hope hurried over and beamed his flashlight in the victim's face. Hope let out a strangled cry when she saw who it was and leaned against her husband for support. She couldn't believe that someone would be horrible enough to kill two sweet, innocent young women who should have had their wholes lives ahead of them. First Belle. And now this.

The dead woman was Chloe Lane.

"God, what are we going to tell Shawn?" Hope asked, "He's been a mess ever since he lost Belle. Chloe was his friend, he's going to be even worse off than before."

"I know." Bo rubbed her shoulders for a minute, then turned his attention back to the body, "Call the forensics team and tell them we need them down here now." he ordered Hope. Hope immediately began dialling the number on her cell phone as Bo looked down at the body.

There were four or five deep knife wounds in her stomach, most of the white dress was soaked with blood. Her jacket hung limply off her shoulders. He noticed the purse sitting nearby and remembered Sami had not been carrying anything with her. He wondered if the purse belonged to Sami but after he checked over the identification, he found that it was Chloe's purse. He shined the flashlight around the field for signs of another purse or handbag but all he could see were two black sandals a little farther up the field. His heart sank when he realized the killer must have Sami's things.

He turned back to Chloe and noticed a piece of the white dress was missing. He looked around for a scrap of white cloth that could have fallen off in the struggle, but saw none. He wondered if the killer had taken back a trophy from his newest murder.

"Bo, I just thought of something." Hope's voice cut through his thoughts, "There's a chance that Sami saw the killer's face. If she did, we'll be able to catch him."

"But she didn't say 'he killed her'." Bo countered, recalling Sami's last words before passing out, "She didn't even say 'she killed her'. She said 'they killed her' which could mean that there was more than one person involved."

"Bo, one of has to get to the hospital right now!" Hope said sharply.

"You go." Bo thought quickly, "The forensics team is going to show up here any minute. After I finish talking with them, I'll meet you up there."

Hope nodded and gave him a brief kiss on the lips before rushing back to the van. She climbed inside and began driving towards the hospital. When she stopped at a red light, she pulled out her phone and began dialling.

Lucas sounded slightly out of breath when he came on the line, like he had just gotten home and had to run to get the phone, "Hello?"

"Lucas, it's Hope." before Lucas could say anything, Hope continued, "I thought you'd want to know what happened tonight. It's about Sami."

"What happened?" Hope could hear the alarm in his voice.

"Don't worry, I think she'll be fine. But she saw something tonight and we think she might have seen the face of the killer. She's bumped her head pretty good but other than a few stitches, I'm pretty sure she'll be okay. She's at the hospital right now, although I don't think she's conscious yet." Hope explained.

"I'm on my way out the door now." Lucas told his cousin, "I'll be at the hospital in five minutes."

"You don't have to-" Hope heard the loud clattering of Lucas hanging up and turned her phone off. She hadn't meant for him to go to the hospital. She had just wanted him to know what happened to the mother of his child. But if he wanted to go down to the hospital to see her, then she wasn't going to try and stop him.

  
  


"You know, she's not going to die on you if you take a break to go get some coffee or something." a voice behind him said dryly. Lucas turned around to see the nurse who had been coming into Sami's room every half hour or so. Every time she came in, she told him to take a break and go get something to eat or drink. He had refused to do this every time she suggested it.

"Thanks, but I'd rather stay here." he said patiently, wishing she would leave him alone. He wasn't leaving this room until she woke up, until he saw with his own eyes that she was going to be okay.

Lucas had freaked out when Hope had called him. He heard that Sami was in the hospital and that was all he needed to hear. He had gotten to the hospital in half the time it usually would have taken him. He felt so horrible, he hated seeing her in the hospital bed, her head wrapped in white bandages. The nurse told him that Sami had gotten stitches on the top of her head and had a lot of cuts and scrapes on her feet but nothing else was wrong.

"Suit yourself." the nurse left a few minutes later and Lucas went back to watching Sami. His hand was wrapped around hers, which seemed so small and fragile. God, she had just lost her father. She didn't deserve this.

Beneath all the worry and fear he felt over Sami's condition, Lucas also felt guilt stabbing into him. Bo and Hope had came into the room a little while ago and told him their theory. They figured that Sami had seen the killer, kicked off her shoes and ran until she reached a public place. Lucas couldn't believe she had been running from killers while he had been...... he didn't even want to think about what he been doing.

Lucas also hoped that she would wake up soon so that she could identify the Salem Serial Killer. That was another reason he refused to leave her room. If the killer knew that she knew who he was, the killer would go after her. If he left her alone, he was afraid that they would attack her. He couldn't let that happen, he couldn't let her die. Not just because Will needed her, even if that was what he would probably end up telling her, but because he needed her in his life as well.


	3. Chapter Three

Chapter Three

  
  


Sami let out a little moan at the feeling of the dull ache in her head. Her hands moved to touch the top of her scalp but someone's hand reached out and took hold of her hands before she could touch her head.

"You really don't want to mess with those stitches yet." the voice was gentle and incredibly familiar. She looked over, into the warm brown eyes she knew better than almost any else's eyes. Lucas wouldn't let go of her hands, even though she tried frantically to make him release them. His hands were wrapped around hers, not painfully tight but firmly enough that she couldn't get away.

"You must be so shaken up over what happened to you tonight. How are you feeling?" he asked in a soft voice, still holding on to her hands.

"I don't know what you're talking about. And my head hurts." again, she tried unsuccessfully to touch her head. Lucas stared at her.

"Do you remember what happened, Sami?" he asked her.

"No." she said simply, finally taking in her surroundings, "Why am I in a hospital? What did you do to me, Lucas?"

"What did I do?" Lucas felt himself growing defensive. It wasn't unusual for her to pin the blame on him for things that he didn't do but it was still got on his nerves, "I didn't do anything. I can't believe you don't remember what happened!"

Someone behind them cleared their throat and Sami and Lucas turned to see Sami's doctor standing behind them. Lucas had met him earlier.

"I was afraid this would happen." the man's grey-green eyes were solemn, "She went through a very horrible experience, then hit her head hard. I've seen it happen more than once."

"Seen what happen?" Sami was still confused, not knowing why she had ended up in the hospital.

"What is the last thing you remember happening, Samantha?" the doctor inquired.

"I remember leaving the library. I was on my way home." Sami looked from the doctor to Lucas with growing confusion, "Can someone please tell me what is going on?"

At that moment, the door burst open and Hope and Bo rushed inside, "We heard she's awake. Does she know who the killer is?" Bo questioned excitedly.

Sami looked over at her aunt and uncle in shock. The doctor put one hand one Bo's arm to keep him calm, "Samantha is suffering from traumatic amnesia. She doesn't remember anything."

"I'm starting to get really annoyed with all of you." she wrenched her hands away from Lucas and pounded one fist on the bed, "I want to know what everyone is talking about and what I am doing here now!"

Hope went over and knelt beside the bed next to Lucas, "We think you saw the killer tonight. We think you saw him killing his victim and then ran away from him. You ran into the Brady Pub and hit your head."

Sami grimaced, "I don't believe it."

"Believe it." Bo spoke up. Sami's head started to throb even more and she pressed her hands against her temples. She noticed the four people watching her with concern.

"I think Samantha needs to rest for now." he ushered Bo and Hope out of the room, then turned to Lucas. Lucas looked up at the doctor pleadingly.

"I'd really appreciate it if you would let me stay here. I'll be quiet and I'll make sure she gets her rest." Lucas assured the doctor.

The doctor nodded, then looked at Sami, "You've got a wonderful boyfriend here. He got here about fifteen minutes after you were admitted in and he didn't leave the room once. At least, that's what I heard from the nurses."

"He's not my boyfriend." Sami said automatically but she wasn't thinking about that. She looked at Lucas, wondering how long he had been there and why he would waste so much time waiting for her.

"Oh, I'm sorry, your husband then." before Sami could correct him, he turned and left the room, "Get some rest. You need it after the long night you've had."

Sami glared at Lucas, "Why did you tell him you were staying? I'm tired and I don't want you to sit here and watch me sleep."

"Come on, Sami, I'll be so quiet you'll close your eyes and forget I'm here." Lucas returned, not wanting to leave her side.

"No, I won't." Sami shot back, narrowing her eyes, "Why do you want to stay anyway? Don't you have better things to do?"

"Because I'm worried about you." he said, "You just has a very bad experience. And I'm not trying to scare you or anything but you're probably in danger. I want to make sure you don't get hurt. For Will's sake." he couldn't help adding. It was like a reflex with him now.

"I don't need anyone to-" Lucas placed one finger against her lips to silence her. She looked up at him questioningly.

"Sami, you need to sleep. Don't try and fight me. You're going to give yourself a really bad headache. Please, just go to sleep and forget I'm here."

Lucas realized his finger was still pressed against her lips and abruptly pulled it off. He wasn't going to let his feelings for her get the best of him. He wouldn't let the killer take her from him. Both he and Will needed her in their lives. He had to protect her. He didn't want to get caught up in his feelings because then he would forget what he was trying to do, he would make mistakes. And one of those mistakes could cost Sami her life.

"Fine." she mumbled, sinking down onto the white pillow. She rolled over so that her back was to him. He listened to her slow, even breathing and felt another jolt of guilt when he saw the bandages wrapped around her head. He was going to keep her safe and push his true feelings for her to the side, at least until the killer was caught. No matter how hard it was.

  
  


The police officer twisted uncomfortably on the expensive couch at the Kiriakas Mansion. He was fairly new to the Salem PD and it was the first time he had to break such awful news to someone. Bo and Hope had went straight to the hospital. He got stuck with the job of telling the girl's boyfriend that she was gone, thanks to his lack of seniority.

"Mr. Black, I understand that the late Chloe Lane was staying here for the last little while." the officer began, fiddling with his belt nervously.

Brady blinked twice, "I must not have heard you correctly. I could have sworn I heard you say the late Chloe Lane."

"You did." the officer took a deep breath, "We found Chloe Lane's body on the grass field at Salem High. She had been murdered and we're assuming she was another victim of the Salem Stalker."

The words made Brady go numb at first, as he continued to listen to the police officer's words. After the numbness passed, he still didn't feel grief yet. Instead, a burning rage seethed in his stomach as he remembered what Nicole had said about Chloe's return.

"If you really love her that much, why would you bring her to Salem and make her the next victim of the Salem Serial Killer?" Brady had believed it was a threat at first but then dismissed the idea because of his secret attraction to his step-grandmother. It obviously had been a threat and she carried it out. Nicole had came back to the house only around ten minutes before the policeman showed up at his door. It made perfect sense.

Still unable to feel pain over Chloe's death, he led the officer to the door. After the officer's car was out of sight, he stormed through the different rooms of the mansion, looking for Nicole.

He finally found her, standing over the small bar in the living room, her hand clutching a crystal glass filled with alcohol. She looked up and smiled at Brady, causing his rage to boil up to the surface. He grabbed both her wrists tightly in his own, not flinching as the glass fell to the floor, shattering at their feet.

"How could you do it, Nicole?" his fists clenched tighter around her wrists and he saw her wince. She kicked him in the shin and snatched her wrists away from him.

"Don't pull a Victor on me, Brady. I have no idea what you're talking about." despite her calm front, he could sense the unease in her voice. He knew that she was hiding something. He knew she killed Chloe.

"You killed Chloe!" he yelled angrily, "You went out and killed her. God, I knew you had problems but I never expected this. It's inhuman, even from you."

"I didn't kill anyone." she replied with so much conviction he almost believed her. But that guilt was still there, he could sense it and he knew her better than anyone else, "I didn't kill anyone tonight or any other night." her chin jutted out defiantly.

"Then where were you tonight?" Brady held his breath, hoping she had a good alibi.

Nicole still looked at him defiantly but the guilt there was stronger than ever, "Look, I didn't kill anyone but I can't tell you where I was tonight."

"Why not?" Brady asked.

"Because it's none of your business." Nicole exploded, "Stop acting like you own me! You're starting to act more like Victor every day and I hate it. Just get away from me. You can't prove I did anything wrong tonight so leave me alone."

"You're right, I can't get you arrested on suspicion." Brady's voice was surprisingly quiet but managed to still hold a fierce anger in it, "But I know that you killed Chloe. You killed the love of my life and I will find evidence against you and you will rot in jail for the rest of your life for this. I will find out what you were doing tonight, Nicole. That's a promise."

He stalked out of the room and Nicole bit her lip. He seemed to so focussed, so determined to hold her responsible for Chloe's death. If he found out what had happened that night, it would ruin everything she had worked so hard to build.

"I have to stop him." she murmured, walking into the next room to find a jacket. She tried to remain calm but her hands were shaking. She couldn't remember the last time she had been so scared. Brady could be very strong-willed when he wanted to be. He was Victor's grandson after all and maybe he had inherited more characteristics from his grandfather than she wanted to believe.

"At least I have my partner in crime." she said to herself, stepping out into the rain. She would find him and together, they would find a way to avoid getting caught. 


	4. Chapter Four

Chapter Four

  
  


"Lucas!" Sami eyelids fluttered open at the sound of the sharp whisper. Lucas had turned around and didn't notice that she was awake. A very distressed looking Nicole Kiriakas didn't seem to notice either.

"What do you want, Nicole?" Lucas asked in a cool voice. Sami watched through lowered lashes as Nicole yanked on his arm so that he was standing. Sami tried not to smirk at the expression on Nicole's face. It was fun watching her practically wet herself. She didn't know what he wanted with Lucas or why she was so scared though.

"I spent two hours looking for you." she hissed angrily, "Do you have any idea how hard you are to find? I have to talk to you about what happened tonight."

Lucas' head snapped backwards and he looked over at Sami, who still feigned sleeping, "Nicole, we can't talk about it in here. Come outside." Sami watched as the two of them left her hospital room, closing the door behind them.

Sami was too curious to resist, so she pulled herself out of the bed. Ignoring the pain in her head, which had intensified because of her sudden movements and ignoring the ache of her bandaged feet when they made contact with the ground, she went over to the door. After hearing Lucas and Nicole's voices outside the door, she pressed her ear against it. She had to strain to make out what they were saying but she still managed to hear their conversation.

"Neither of us have an alibi for tonight." Nicole was saying in a panic-stricken voice, "And Brady is already suspicious because I can't tell him where I was. He came right out and accused me of killing Chloe Lane."

"What does this have to do with me? You didn't mention being with me, did you?" Lucas sounded worried.

"No but it doesn't matter." Nicole responded, "If I get caught, you're going to get caught too. We're in this together now, whether you like it or not."

"Why don't you just make something up?" Lucas asked, "No one is going to suspect me of the murder so they'll never link us together. No one saw us together, just say you were somewhere else."

"You don't understand." Nicole cried in frustration, "Brady is determined to find out the truth. And once he does, it is going to ruin us." Sami heard Nicole choke back a sob, "If Victor finds out, he's going to murder me. He brought Chloe back to Salem to keep me away from Brady. Then I had to go pull a stunt like this. I should have known I wouldn't get away with it. What the hell was I thinking?"

"Shut up, Nicole." Lucas snapped, "You think that Victor is going to be very happy with me? You brought me into something I never should have gotten involved in. I'm sorry I ever listened to you."

Nicole snorted loudly, "Oh, that's rich. You're going to try and make yourself believe that I tricked you into it. I know I haven't always been fair to you but you could tell I needed help. And you chose to help me so don't pretend like I forced you into something you were totally against."

"Well, I wish I had been smart enough to say no. Getting involved in your life has never had a positive effect on me. I should have discovered that a long time ago but I guess I was too much of an idiot to learn my lesson." Lucas shot back.

"I guess you're just an idiot then." Nicole retorted, "But we need to make a truce. If we are going to keep what happened tonight a secret, we have to stick together. No one will know what went on and I will kill to keep it a secret if I have to."

"All right, truce." Lucas agreed. Nicole let out a loud sigh.

"What we did tonight was supposed to help me get Brady." Nicole said sadly, "But he's already jumping all over me for what happened with Chloe. I don't think I'll ever get him to love me."

"I said we'd make a truce," Lucas told her, "But I didn't say I was going to sit here and feel sorry for you. Excuse me, but I have to go back inside with Sami." Sami's eyes widened at the words and she rushed back over to her bed. After diving underneath the sheets, she realized how much her feet and head hurt.

She figured she deserved it for listening in on Lucas and Nicole's conversation. But it had been worth it. It sounded like Lucas and Nicole were behind Chloe's murder. And if Lucas thought she had information locked away in her subconscious that could put him in jail, it was no wonder he wasn't leaving her side. Sami felt hurt slice through her because she had actually started to believe that he cared about her. But all he was trying to do was keep himself out of prison.

But despite what she heard Lucas and Nicole discussing, she still couldn't bring herself to believe that Lucas could be the killer. It just didn't seem possible. So, she decided not to mention what she had heard to anyone, she would just watch her back. Remembering the gun she had stolen from the police officer's box that was now stashed away in the closet in her bedroom, she felt confident that Lucas wouldn't be able to hurt her. Not that she really believed he would try and hurt her but you could never be too careful anymore. 

She would keep quiet about what happened with Nicole for now. Logic was pushing against her instincts and it was making her head feel like someone was pounding on her temples with a sledgehammer. Logic told her that she should be afraid of Lucas after hearing his conversation with Nicole but her instincts told her that she didn't need to be afraid around him, that he wasn't capable of killing her or anyone else.

Lucas came back inside and sat down next to the bed, "You're awake." he said, "Are you feeling any better?"

He sounded so concerned, like he actually cared. Sami felt her resolve weakening and she knew she didn't want to be afraid around him, "A lot better. But, Lucas, I hate knowing that I might know who the killer is but I can't remember anything that happened. I just want whoever did this and have him get the death penalty so he'll be out of our lives forever. I'm going to do everything I can to find out who it is so I can send them to their grave, where they belong." she was testing him. But he didn't flinch at all when she mentioned the killer getting put to death, to her relief.

"I think that's what everyone wants." Lucas responded, squeezing her hand in his. She felt so safe with him and she really wanted to trust her instincts. But she couldn't just depend on her instincts anymore. She had to steel herself against him, just in case there was a chance he was the killer.

The door to the hospital room creaked open and Bo and Hope entered the room, their faces drawn and tired. Sami looked over at Lucas and saw how exhausted he looked as well. She realized how late it must be.

"I don't know if this is the best time to bring this up but we think you should know this." Bo began, regarding Sami with a grave expression on his face, "We don't think you should be staying at your apartment anymore."

"Why not?" Sami demanded.

Hope stepped up beside her husband, "Sami, do you remember if you were carrying anything on your way back from the library?"

"Yes, I had my purse. My books were in it. Why?" Sami asked, still not realizing what they were getting at.

"Did it have any identification in it?" Bo inquired. When Sami nodded he said, "Then you need to find somewhere else to live as soon as possible. If this relentless psycho didn't know where you lived before, then he sure as hell does now. And it's only a matter of time, before he decides to come after you."


	5. Chapter Five

Chapter Five

  
  
  


Nicole made her way down the hall towards the exit of the hospital. Lucas had been absolutely no help. As she walked down the hall, she fumbled around in her purse for a piece of gum. Without warning, she collided with someone walking down the hall in the opposite direction.

"Watch where you're going." Nicole muttered, her bad mood quickly escalating. She looked up and saw Phillip Kiriakas, who was helping pick up all the things that had fallen out of her purse.

"Sorry. Won't happen again." he said easily.

"What are you doing here anyway?" Nicole demanded, "It's late."

"Well, Shawn heard the Sami might know who the killer is and he dragged me, Cassie, Rex and Mimi down here. There is nothing that guy wants motr right now than to find the killer. I still can't believe Sami got away."

"Yeah, it's pretty incredible." Nicole said bitterly. She looked Phillip over carefully. He seemed pretty calm and unfazed about what happened. She had expected him to be more shaken up over what happened to a girl that was supposed to have been his friend.

"Well, I'm just going to leave now. Oh, and I'm sorry for your loss." she added half-heartedly then made a move to walk away. But the confused look on his face stopped her.

"What loss?" he asked and Nicole raised an eyebrow.

"You mean you don't know what happened yet?" Phillip shook his head.

"I thought Sami was okay. I heard that she got away and everything so what loss are you talking about?" he questioned.

Nicole didn't really feel one way or another about Phillip. The fact that he was Victor's son was definitely a black mark against him but other than that, she didn't know him at all. But she could tell he didn't like her. After what she had done to his father and Lucas, she almost couldn't blame him. Still, she didn't want to be the one to tell Phillip about Chloe because she wouldn't get any joy out of it. She only enjoyed seeing people she hated suffer, not almost complete strangers.

"I'm sure you'll find out soon enough. You don't want to hear it from me anyway." again, she tried to leave but Phillip grabbed hold of her elbow.

"Please, just tell me." he begged her, "I have to know."

"Fine." Nicole sighed, "There was another murder tonight. Not Sami. But they found Chloe's body out at Salem High. She's dead." the words rolled off her tongue in almost a purring noise but Phillip was too horrified to notice.

"I can't believe it." he whispered to himself, "She can't really be gone."

"I'm sorry." she was a good liar. Despite the fact she felt no actual sadness about Chloe's death, she did a very good job of pretending. She did feel sorry for Phillip though, who looked crushed.

When Phillip looked up and began staring at her, she shifted uneasily, "I know what you're thinking and don't. I did not kill Chloe tonight and I wish everyone would stop thinking that."

"I wasn't thinking that." Phillip responded, "I was just thinking about how upset Brady must be. At least he has you to get comfort from. He's lucky."

Nicole rolled her eyes, "I wish that's how it was. But he believes I killed her. I guess it's my fault. I have an alibi for tonight but I can't tell anyone what it is." And no one is ever going to find out, she added silently.

Phillip stared into her eyes, as if trying to figure her out. She knew the fact she was going around telling everyone she had a secret alibi made her look guilty. She was going to have to work on her act some more if she didn't want to end up getting caught. After a few minutes of watching her, Phillip seemed to make a decision.

"You may have made my father's life a living hell," Nicole opened her mouth to protest but Phillip stopped her, "And you might have, in fact you probably did kill Colin Murphy. You might have a talent for manipulating situations until you come out a winner but I don't think you killed Chloe."

Nicole felt her face growing hot, "First off, I didn't make Victor's life a living hell. It was the other way around. Secondly, I did not kill Colin and so what if I put in a little bit of an effort to get what I want? And finally, I don't really care what you think. So just keep your opinions to yourself." she brushed past him and continued walking towards the exit doors. Phillip stared after her.

Phillip hardly ever came into contact with his father's wife. But from what he had seen, she was manipulative, she was opportunistic and she was selfish. Still, she didn't seem to have a very high opinion of him either, judging from her last words. He knew he shouldn't really care. But there was something about that defiant look in her eye that made him feel defiant about being treated like that by her.

  
  
  


The door to Sami's room burst open and Shawn, Rex, Cassie and Mimi all noisily entered the room. Hope stared up at them in surprise.

"What are you all doing here?" she asked, "You should be sleeping."

"Mom, we're adults now, we don't have bedtimes." Shawn turned to Sami, "Have you told them who the killer is yet?" he asked, his voice heavy with impatience.

"No, she has amnesia and doesn't remember a thing." Bo spoke up, looking slightly irritated by his son's sudden appearance, "Sami, is there anywhere you think you could stay until we manage to track down the killer?"

"Wait a minute, why does she have to move?" Cassie cut in. Bo scowled and Hope could tell that his patience was quickly diminishing. On top of being tired and having to deal with the sixth murder of the serial killer, he had to figure out a way to keep his niece safe.

"Because the killer has all her identification and knows where she lives. It's the only way she can stay safe." Hope explained quickly.

Sami looked worried, "What about Lucas? And Will? Lucas lives right across the hall so they're probably in danger too."

"She's right." Bo admitted, turning his attention to Lucas, "It looks like both of you are going to have to get out of those apartments really soon."

"I have a suggestion." Mimi spoke up timidly and everyone turned around to look at her, "They can all come stay at the loft. Lucas and Sami can stay in Belle's old room and Will can stay in the spare bedroom."

"Are you sure you don't mind?" Lucas asked uncertainly but he hoped that it would work out. Sharing a room with Sami was just one more way to make sure that the killer didn't get to her. It might be both emotionally and physically draining on him, since he was going to have to control his feelings for her but he could live with that.

"Absolutely." Mimi nodded, "I really don't like staying in the loft alone at night anymore. In fact, I've been staying with Rex every night for a while now. There's more than enough room and it would help me be able to get some sleep in my own bed for a change.

"What's wrong with my bed, Mimi?" Rex asked in a mock hurt voice. His eyes met Lucas' and Rex mouthed, 'Don't do it'. Lucas smothered a laugh with a cough.

"That sounds like the best way to do it. What do you think, Sami?" he asked. Sami was silent for a few minutes.

"I guess so." she finally answered. Lucas let out the breath he hadn't even realized he had been holding. 

"Good." Bo gave Mimi, Lucas and Sami looks of approval, "I suggest you move out right away. Can you make it out of there tomorrow?"

Sami and Mimi looked taken back by the short notice but Lucas quickly jumped in and agreed to move out tomorrow. A short time later, Rex, Mimi, Cassie and Shawn left Sami's room. Phillip was waiting outside for them.

"I feel so sorry for you, Mimi." Cassie told her, "Living with Sami would be torture." everyone knew how much Cassie disliked her sister for spilling the beans about her and Rex's paternity. Cassie never even tried to hide it.

"It won't be so bad." Mimi lowered her voice a little bit and a mischievous smile spread across her face, "Besides, I have an ulterior motive."

"Like what?" Shawn asked.

"Well, think about it. With Lucas and Sami sharing a bed together and having chemistry like they do, there's no way they'll be able to resist each other. If I give them a little push in the right direction, I'll be able to get them together. Then Sami will be happy. It's what Belle would have wanted."

"You're right." Shawn agreed, smiling at Mimi, "If there's anything I can do to help you get them together, just say the word." It was the first time Shawn thought about Belle without wanting to burst into tears. He knew Belle would want Sami to be happy and he was thankful that he had the chance to do this one last thing for Belle.

"I'll keep that in mind." Mimi smiled back at him. The five of them all headed towards Shawn's car, not realizing that one of the killers had been hiding in the shadows. They didn't know that the killer had heard their entire conversation. A malicious sneer crept onto their face as they thought of how much fun it would be to destroy Sami once and for all. She wasn't going to get away with being the only flaw in an otherwise perfect murder. She would pay. They would just have to wait and find the perfect time and perfect place to give the blonde-haired witch exactly what was coming to her.


	6. Chapter Six

Chapter Six

  
  


Mimi had been too upset over the death of her best friend to rearrange anything so it was like Belle had never left her room in the loft. The queen-sized bed was neatly made, covered by fluffy pink blankets. Her pictures of herself, Shawn, Mimi, Brady, Chloe and the rest of her friends were still taking up most of the room on her desk. A stuffed rabbit sat on the pink reclining chair. The walls were painted a pale pink colour which matched the carpet. The only thing that had changed was the fact that Bonnie had came over and cleaned out the closet and dresser drawers. She said she needed them to give to charity.

Lucas set down his suitcases and looked around the room in disgust. Sharing a room with Sami was going to have more than just the disadvantage of doing everything he could to keep his hands off her. Not only that but he was stuck staying in a room that was pink. Horribly pink. Nauseatingly pink. He looked over at Sami, who didn't seem to mind the prospect of sleeping in a room that looked like it had been hit with an explosion of Pepto-Bismol.

"All right." Sami took a deep breath after setting her own suitcases at her side, "I'll take the bed and you can sleep...... on the chair." she finished, pointing at the fuzzy pink chair. Lucas gave her a horrified look and shook his head.

"I am not sleeping on a chair." he replied.

Sami rolled her eyes in exasperation, "It's not like the chair is uncomfortable or anything. I mean, come on, Lucas, it reclines!"

"If you like the chair so much and think it's so comfortable, then you sleep on the chair and I'll take the bed." Lucas shot back. Stubborn brat, he thought to himself. If she kept this up, he'd never wind up sharing a bed with her.

"No way!" Sami shrieked, then calmed down. Lucas watched as her eyes filled up with tears and her lower lip began to tremble, "Lucas, I need a warm bed after what happened. The idea of the killer targeting me next is so horrible. I can't sleep in the chair."

"Don't cry, Sami. It's going to be fine." he pulled her into his arms and held her body against his. Kissing the top of her head softly, he said, "No one is going to even think about touching you. I won't let them."

Sami pulled back and wiped at her eyes, "Does this mean you'll sleep on the chair?" she asked and Lucas knew that she was trying to get her way with him. And it was working. She obviously could tell that he had the hardest time saying no to her when she cried. She was one crafty woman. That was one of the things he loved about her. Still, there was no way he was going to sleep on the chair.

"Ahem." Sami and Lucas whirled around to see Mimi and Will standing in the doorframe, cunning smiles lighting up both their faces, "If you're really so scared about what happened, then why don't you and Lucas just share the bed?" Mimi suggested, "It's big enough to fit both of you. Besides, Sami, what better way to ease your fears that to be sleeping next to one of the most handsome men in Salem?" Mimi suddenly scowled a little bit, "Man, I sounded just like my mom."

"I'm sorry about what happened to you, mom." Will said, the sly smile not leaving his face, "I think you really need dad to stay with you because he's not going to let anyone hurt you. He's going to protect you."

Just like Lucas had a hard time saying no to Sami, occasions where Sami denied their son of what he wanted were very rare. A look of resignation took over her face and she turned to Lucas, "I guess sharing the bed would be the most logical explanation." she said stiffly. Lucas thought he saw a glimmer of relief under the facade of reluctance. He hoped she couldn't tell how happy he was that she had agreed to share the bed with him. Even if all they could do in the bed was sleep.

"I'm glad you think so." Lucas smirked at her, noticing the gleeful expressions on Mimi and Will's faces out of the corner of his eye.

Mimi and Will left the room and Will gave Mimi a high five once Sami and Lucas were out of hearing and seeing range.

"We did it!" Will exclaimed, his eyes shining triumphantly, "It's only a matter of time before both of them see how much they love each other. My parents are going to get together."

Mimi grinned at Will, "It's about time too. But I think they're going to need more of a push in the right direction but that shouldn't be a problem. Between you, me, Rex, Shawn and Phillip, they'll be together before they know what hit them. I asked Cassie to help too but she said she refused to help set Lucas up with Sami. Your aunt can really hold a grudge."

"Yeah." Will nodded in agreement, "So, what are we going to do now?"

"Rex and I have to go pick up the pizza we ordered for dinner." Mimi told Will, "Shawn, Cassie and Phillip all went over to see Brady. He's probably in such bad shape right now. I would have went too but I figured I needed to stay here with you and your mom and dad. Do you want to come with me and Rex?"

"Okay." Will grabbed his jacket and ran out the door ahead of Mimi. Before leaving, Mimi turned her head towards the stairs and wondered if Lucas and Sami were managing to get through unpacking in the same room without killing each other.

As if on cue, Lucas yelled, "Sami! Get your clothes out of my half of the closet."

Mimi sighed and shook her head sadly. They might be fighting now but she could bet money that they would be getting along a lot better very soon. She would just make sure to always knock before she went into their bedroom because when Sami and Lucas finally gave in to temptation, she did not want to be around to witness it.

  
  


Nicole took a long sip of the brandy, letting the bitter liquid burn a path down her throat. Tilting her head back delicately to drain the glass, she jumped at the sound of footsteps entering the room. She kept her back to the person, praying it wasn't Victor. She couldn't face him after what she had done tonight. He would see right through her and be able to tell that she was guilty. Then he would kill her.

But she heard another voice, one that was second on her list of people she didn't want to have to deal with. Brady came closer to her and she stiffened when she felt him right behind her.

"So, Nicole," he began in a loud voice, "I guess this is what you have to do, right? Drink away the fact that you are a murderess and that the blood of six people is on your hands. Actually seven, counting Colin Murphy. You killed Abe, Jack, Maggie and Caroline. Then my sister, Belle. Then Chloe." the last two names came out of his mouth in choked whispers, "How could you kill them, Nicole? I tried to be your friend and I thought you knew how much they meant to me."

Nicole refused to meet his eyes and reached for the bottle of brandy. After pouring herself another glass of brandy, she spoke, "Brady, I wasn't anywhere near Chloe that night. I wasn't doing anything wrong." she lied.

"I can't believe you can stand there and pretend you're innocent." Brady screamed at her, "My grandfather was right about you. You're a heartless, unloving tramp and you deserve every single bad thing that has ever happened to you."

She felt herself losing her grip on the glass. Setting it down, she watched Brady leave the room. Once he was gone and she had gotten over the shock of what he had said, she picked up that glass and drank half the contents. Exhaling loudly, she glared at the door Brady walked through to leave the room.

"I only did what I needed to, Brady." she murmured softly, "I'm sorry if you don't like it." not wanting to think about her step-grandson anymore, she finished off her fifth glass of brandy and reached for the bottle again. Tonight she would forget everything that happened on the night of Chloe Lane's murder. No matter how many drinks it took.


	7. Chapter Seven

Chapter Seven

  
  


Shawn, Phillip and Cassie were seated in the living room, trying to make conversation with Brady, avoiding saying anything about Chloe or Belle. As Cassie and Shawn tried to shuffle around the real reason they had come to see Brady, Phillip found himself becoming disinterested with the conversation. He stopped listening to what his three friends were saying and found himself wondering where Nicole was.

"Where are my dad and Nicole?" Phillip joined the conversation again, trying to sound casual. Cassie and Shawn flinched and Phillip realized that bringing up Nicole after what happened with Chloe wasn't the most considerate thing to do. But it was too late now. Phillip watched as Brady's jaw clenched.

"Grandad is working late at Titan tonight. And I don't know or care where Nicole is." he informed Phillip through clenched teeth. Phillip nodded and went back to staring out the window. Snow had began falling again, coming down in thick flakes. He squinted to see through the yard, his vision blurred by the snow. He thought he noticed a figure walking outside. It looked a lot like Nicole, he thought to himself. But then again, he had been thinking about Nicole a lot lately and it was probably just his imagination.

He looked closer and realized that it was Nicole. Her blonde hair was tied back and she was only wearing jeans and a t-shirt. She seemed to be walking slowly and aimlessly around the yard, near the pool. Phillip frowned and stood up.

"Excuse me, I forgot something in the car." he lied before hurrying out the front door, barely remembering to put on his jacket. He hurried out into the snow and in a matter of seconds, he spotted Nicole. He rushed over to her and caught her arm. It felt ice cold against his warm skin.

"What are you doing out here?" he demanded, taking in the sight of her pale face, which had already taken on a blueish tinge. Her shirt was soaked through but she wasn't shivering. Nicole tried to smile at him but her face felt frozen.

"I was just going for a walk." she answered, "My head was really hurting, so I came out here and it was nice. It didn't hurt anymore."

Phillip stared at her, everything falling into place. She was drunk, just like she had been on his mother's wedding night. And to top off being drunk, she was obviously suffering from hypothermia.

"Come on, you need to come inside and warm up." Phillip helped her towards the house and let her inside.

"Phillip? What are you doing?" Brady called and Nicole turned to Phillip with a panicked look in her eyes.

"You can't let Brady see me like this." she hissed. Phillip thought quickly, speaking again before Brady could come meet him at the door.

"Nothing, I just have to go to the bathroom." Phillip shouted back, then began helping Nicole up the stairs. Nicole and Phillip reached her bedroom and Phillip instructed Nicole to find some warm clothes and change in the bathroom.

Once she had went into the bathroom, Phillip found a closet in the hall and grabbed a set of blankets to bring back to Nicole. He hoped she hadn't been out there very long and that she would be able to warm up fast. She finally came out of the bathroom in a black sweatshirt and sweat pants. She sat down on the bed and Phillip sat down next to her, throwing the blankets over her shoulders. Nicole smiled gratefully at him and pulled the blankets around her tighter.

"Are you feeling okay?" Phillip asked her.

"I'm fine. Still a little cold but other than that, everything's fine." she had seemed to have sobered up after he had brought her inside so he decided to try and get some real answers from her.

"What were you doing the night Chloe was murdered?" Nicole's head snapped up abruptly at his sudden question.

"I can't tell you. Especially not you. You're Victor's son and Brady's uncle. No one is ever going to know what happened that night." she said with determination.

"Did you kill Chloe?" Phillip asked.

"No!" she cried angrily, "I swear to God, I didn't go anywhere near her that night."

"Then tell me what you were doing. Please, I promise I won't tell anyone." Phillip wrapped one arm around her shoulders, "I want to help you prove to everyone that you didn't do this."

"Fine." before Phillip could say another word, Nicole blurted out everything that had happened. Phillip listened in shock as she told him what she and Lucas had been doing on the night of Chloe's murder. Once she finished, she looked at him expectantly.

"There, I told you. That's why I can't tell Brady or Victor or anyone else. It was a stupid thing to do and I wish I could take it back. And even though what I did wasn't very..... good, I don't think I should get blamed for killing Chloe." Nicole finished.

"You're right, you shouldn't." Phillip responded, "That's why we're going to catch the real killer. We're going to prove you're innocent."

Nicole eyed him with confusion, "I don't get it. Why are you helping me? We barely know each other."

"Because I hate seeing people get blamed for crimes they didn't commit." Phillip tried not to cringe when he remembered that he had blamed Rex for a lot of crimes he didn't commit not long ago, "Besides, if I can help put this killer back behind bars, I'll get a higher position in the ISA."

"You work for the ISA?" Nicole asked in amazement. Phillip nodded.

"You keep my secret and I'll keep yours." he said. Nicole just nodded. She was glad that someone was finally there to take her side. She had just never expected it to be the son of the man she hated more than anyone else.

  
  


Cassie couldn't take it anymore. She was sick of avoiding the real thing that she and Shawn really wanted to bring up. Phillip still hadn't come back from the bathroom and Cassie wondered if he had left. Once Shawn and Brady both went silent, she decided to speak.

"Brady, I just wanted you to know that I'm sorry about what happened to Belle and Chloe." she said earnestly, "I never really knew Chloe and I was never that nice to Belle but I wish this hadn't happened to them. And if you ever need anything, then me and Shawn and Rex and Mimi and Phillip are all here for you."

Brady seemed touched by her words and smiled at her, "Thanks. I appreciate that." he looked like he wanted to say more but the doorbell interrupted their conversation. Henderson wasn't working that night so Brady left the room to answer the door. 

Shawn and Cassie heard Brady greet the person at the door then ask, "Why are you here?"

Cassie immediately recognized the second voice as Lucas', "I came here to say something to you. It will only take a second."

"Go ahead, I'm listening." Brady told him.

"It's about Nicole. I heard from some people that you think she killed Chloe. I just wanted you to know that Nicole didn't do it." Lucas said.

"How do you know?" Brady challenged him.

"Because she was with me that night." Lucas answered.

"Really?" Brady sounded suspicious, "And where were you? What were you doing?"

Lucas was silent for a few moments, "I can't tell you. I just thought maybe you would back off the idea of Nicole being the killer if I came and talked to you."

"Well, you were wrong." Brady shot back, "I still believe that Nicole did it. And now I believe that you had something to do with it too. Especially if you won't give me a real alibi either."

A few minutes later, Cassie and Shawn heard the door slam. Brady came back in, the look on his face cold and angry. Shawn stood up. Phillip came into the room after Brady, looking surprisingly happy.

"We should get going now that Phillip is back." Shawn stated and Cassie and Phillip nodded in agreement. Brady managed a weak smile.

"See you guys later." he said.

Cassie smiled sadly back at him, "Don't forget what I said. It must be hard for you and you probably need friends right now." Cassie didn't exactly know why she was being so nice to Brady. Maybe it was because she felt bad about being so mean to Belle when she was alive, even if Belle had been the most annoying person she had ever met. Maybe it was because she could imagine how much pain she would be feeling if she lost Rex. She couldn't really sympathize with Brady about losing his girlfriend because she had never had a real boyfriend. She wasn't even sure she'd ever been in love.

She might have had a crush in Shawn. And she might have really wanted Lucas before she found out he was her half-brother. Then there was the long list of all the other random guys she had thrown herself at but they hadn't meant anything to her. The idea of being in love with a guy the way Belle loved Shawn or the way Mimi loved Rex was foreign to her.

"I won't forget." he promised and she found herself noticing how blue his eyes were. Brushing the thought away, she moved on to the front door along with Shawn and Phillip. 

  
  


Lucas stirred in his sleep and his eyes suddenly flew open. He looked across to the other side of the bed and noticed Sami's shivering form beneath the covers. She was shivering and rolling around and muttering things in her sleep. Lucas couldn't make out what she was saying but he could tell she was having a nightmare. Then he noticed the lines of tears running down both cheeks.

"Daddy, how could you let them take you away from me?" she suddenly cried out in her sleep, "They killed Chloe too. They almost killed me. I don't want to die, daddy. Don't let them hurt me."

Lucas shook her shoulder lightly until she woke up. She rolled over to meet his eyes.

"Lucas, I had the worst nightmare." she told him, sitting up in the bed.

"What happened in it?" he asked her in a soft voice, "Do you remember anything about the killer?"

She shook her head, "I don't even remember what happened in it. I just remember being scared. Really scared. Lucas, I don't want to have another nightmare. I just want this to be over." she threw herself into his arms, pressing her tear-streaked face against his bare chest. Lucas stroked her hair, trying to calm her down by whispering in her ear.

"Nothing bad is going to happen. I'm right here. I'm not going to leave you. You're going to be fine." he kept whispering to her until she finally stopped crying. Lucas lay down and Sami lay down next to him, letting her head rest on his chest. He smiled to himself, loving the feeling of her silky hair sliding across his bare skin. His smile faded when he remembered the killer. 

He realized how close he came to losing Sami that night. If she hadn't ran fast enough, she might not have been here tonight. He decided that he would tell her how he felt about her once the killer was caught. Because he couldn't risk losing her again without letting her know that how important she was to him.


	8. Chapter Eight

Chapter Eight

  
  


"We should watch a movie." Will said after Lucas and Sami had finished cleaning up the kitchen on Tuesday night. Rex and Mimi would make dinner on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays and Lucas and Sami would make dinner Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays. Shawn would make dinner on Sundays and Phillip and Cassie were usually around to help him make it.

"That sounds like a good idea." Will, Rex and Mimi exchanged little smiles, making sure that Lucas and Sami didn't notice, "What movie should we watch?" Mimi asked.

Will pretended to consider it for a moment, "I think we should watch The Lion King." he announced, looking over at the stack of videos next to the VCR.

Mimi went over to the stack of videos and pulled a tape out of the stack, "Conner left this over here the last time he came over." she looked at Rex, Lucas and Sami, "I think it would be a lot of fun to watch it. What do you guys think?"

"If you really want to, then I'll guess I'll watch it too." Rex told her, sitting down on one side of the couch.

"Why not?" Lucas sat down on the other side of the couch and Sami sat down next to him. Will sat down next to his mom and Mimi put the video into the VCR and pressed the play button.

"Mimi, could you turn the lights off, please?" Will asked innocently, "I can see the screen better that way." Mimi smiled and flicked off the lights so that it was completely dark, except for the light coming from the television screen. Mimi squeezed onto the couch between Rex and Will. 

Will squirmed on the couch uncomfortably, "I'm squished. Can you move over, mom? You're taking up too much space."

"Of course, sweetie." Sami moved over a little bit but Will kept telling her to move over until she was pressed against Lucas. Will let out a satisfied sigh and leaned back on the couch.

"I have lots of room now." he told them. Rex and Mimi seemed to have a lot of room too. Lucas and Sami were a different story. Lucas' legs were mashed between the arm of the couch and Sami's thigh. About ten minutes into the movie, in an attempt to get more comfortable with her position, Sami rested her head on Lucas' shoulder. In return, Lucas unconsciously put one arm around her waist and laced his fingers through hers. Rex noticed this and nudged Mimi so that she would look too.

"It's working." she whispered to Rex gleefully, "I knew we could get them together." Mimi couldn't wait until they got a little later into the movie, so that she, Will and Rex could put the next part of their plan for the night into action.

A over little halfway into the movie, right after Nala had tried to kill Pumba and after Simba came to Pumba's rescue, Rex excused himself to go to the bathroom. Will saw that his parents were watching the screen intently and saw it as his change to wriggle off the couch and sneak into the pantry without them noticing. 

Mimi's cue to leave the room was when Nala and Simba walked off, leaving Timon and Pumba staring after them from their spot in the bushes.

"I have to go get something from the kitchen." Mimi whispered, tip-toeing out of the room as the first strains of Can You Feel The Love Tonight came on. Lucas shifted a little bit on his spot on his couch as he listened to the words of the song. He looked over at Sami and couldn't help but admire how beautiful she looked, even the plain outfit she had on. His fingers tightened around hers a little bit and he looked past Sami to see that Will, Rex and Mimi had all disappeared.

"Sami, look, they're all gone." he whispered, "Those three are all plotting to get us together."

Sami rolled her eyes, "You just now noticed? I bet this was Will's idea. And it's really not going to work."

"Why not?" Lucas asked.

"Please, like sitting next to you and watching two cartoon lions go at it really turns me on or something." Sami shook her head, "I don't think so."

"I think it does turn you on." Lucas smirked at her, "It turns me on too. So let's just have wild animal sex right here and right now."

"Pig." Sami squirmed, trying to move away from him but he kept one arm around her waist, making it impossible for her to move. She glared at Lucas, who was still smirking at her.

"It's okay for you to admit what's going on in that dirty little mind of yours." he continued to mock her, "I can already sense it. You're getting so fidgety, it's impossible not to tell what you're thinking about. I know you want me, Sami."

"God, you are so disgusting." she said, trying to sound serious but the corners of her mouth kept turning up into a smile. She turned away from him so that he couldn't see her smiling. When she turned back to him, his eyes were serious. The song continued to play as he leaned down slightly, his lips hovering inches from her.

"Look, we did it! They're actually going to kiss!" Will said from his spot in the pantry. He, Mimi and Rex were all watching Lucas and Sami from inside the pantry.

"I just wish I didn't have to miss my favourite part in the entire movie." Mimi said with a fake pout. Rex was smiling out at Lucas and Sami too. His smile faded when Sami suddenly shoved Lucas away from her.

"Lucas, get away from me!" she yelled. Her face was contorted with rage and she moved all the way over to the other side of the couch.

Lucas hadn't even kissed her and she had freaked out. That was both good and bad. It meant that he would never end up making the mistake of kissing her and losing his focus but it also meant that she didn't return his feelings. Somewhere deep down he had always believed she did.

"Sami, what's wrong?" he asked her, trying to calm her down.

"What's wrong?" she glared at him, "You just tried to kiss me so that I'll let my guard down. And once I let my guard down, you'll help Nicole get rid of me, just like you did with Chloe. You did do it, didn't you? You and Nicole killed her. Stop looking at me like that, I heard you outside talking in the hall at the hospital."

"We were not talking about killing Chloe." Lucas protested angrily, "You don't know what happened."

"Well, if you weren't talking about killing Chloe, then what were you talking about? Unless it's too horrible and you can't go into it because it would put you on Death Row." Sami challenged. Lucas took a deep breath and let it out slowly.

"I guess I have no choice but to tell you." he sounded defeated, "Come upstairs and I'll tell you. I don't want anyone else to know and those other three are probably still watching us."

Once Lucas and Sami were up the stairs, Will came out of the pantry. Mimi and Rex came out after him.

"Under other circumstances, I would have been happy they went up to their bedroom to have some time alone. But I think they went up there for different reasons than we wanted." Mimi whispered to Rex. She hadn't been able to catch the last part of their conversation but it hadn't sounded good.

Will was turning on the lights, "All that romantic atmosphere for nothing." Rex shook his head sadly. Two minutes later, someone knocked on the door of the loft. Mimi opened the door to let Brady in.

"Hey, Brady. What are you doing here?" Mimi asked him.

"I came here to talk to Lucas. Is he here?" Brady responded.

"Yeah, he went upstairs with Sami. I think they're just talking. You can go up there if you want. But why do you want to talk to him?" Mimi asked curiously.

"I said some things I didn't mean to Lucas a few days ago." Brady admitted, "I feel really bad now so I wanted to apologize."

Brady began walking up the steps and stopped outside Belle's old bedroom. He heard Sami and Lucas' voices coming from inside the room. Unable to shake of the suspicious feelings he felt towards Lucas, he remained standing outside the door, listening to the conversation they were having inside.

"I didn't want to do it at first but Nicole wouldn't let it go. She refused to leave my apartment until I agreed to do it. She was desperate and I felt like I needed to help her out. I figured then she would leave me alone but then everything went wrong and I'm going to end up paying for it the rest of my life. Brady is already so sure that Nicole killed Chloe and he's going to keep sticking his nose where it doesn't belong until he finds out the truth. " he heard Lucas saying. Brady's eyes widened and he didn't stick around to hear Sami's response. He quietly went back down the steps and left the loft after saying good-bye to Mimi and Rex. 

He couldn't believe what he had heard Lucas saying. After he had thought about it for a while, he had decided that Lucas couldn't be in on the murder with Nicole. He was even ready to admit that maybe someone else had killed Chloe other Nicole. But after hearing what Lucas said, he was more sure than ever that Lucas and Nicole were behind Chloe's murder. Now Lucas was telling Sami and somehow forcing her to keep her mouth shut about what happened. He actually thought he could get away with it. Brady's mouth was set in a grim line and he knew that Lucas and Nicole weren't going to manage to get out of this unscathed. He would make sure they didn't.


	9. Chapter Nine

Chapter Nine

  
  


Sami shook her head in disgust once Lucas had finished his story, "You just can't keep it in your pants, can you?"

"Hey, it's not like that." Lucas objected, "Nicole came to me, not the other way around. She was really upset about Brady and Chloe being together all the time. She said she felt like she had lost her touch with seducing guys. She was practically crying and she would not get off my couch. I felt sorry for her and I wanted her to leave me alone."

"You're a lot stronger than her." Sami remarked, "There's no way you can use the excuse that she wouldn't leave your apartment. If you really wanted her to get out, you could have carried her out or something."

"You're missing the point." Lucas said in exasperation, "She felt like she'd spend the rest of her life without a guy who wanted to sleep with her. Even if we are on really bad terms, she ended up convincing me to sleep with her."

"I bet it didn't take long to convince you." Sami shot back, "I bet all she had to do was say please and you were ready to jump on top of her."

"Actually, she tried begging for about five minutes but she got sick of that really quick. Then she started undressing. Then she-"

"Stop." Sami held up her hand, "I am not in the mood to hear this. But honestly, what is wrong with you? You just can't pass up the opportunity to give a girl comfort sex, can you? It makes you feel like a good person, doesn't it?"

Lucas glared at her, "You really don't want to go into that again. I can't help that I'm surrounded by women with low self-esteem that need to me to help them feel good about themselves."

"You're a conceited jerk." Sami snapped, her face flushing a dark red colour, "I bet it wasn't about comfort sex with Nicole. I bet you just wanted to sleep with her."

Lucas stopped glaring long enough to throw an infuriating smirk at Sami, "Why does it matter to you, Sami? Unless you're jealous."

"I am not jealous." Sami retorted, "The woman that you are screwing does not reflect on me at all."

"I think it does." Lucas said in a sing-song voice, "I think you're jealous of Nicole. Admit it and I won't tickle you."

Sami tried to get off the bed before he could reach her but he grabbed her arm. He started tickling her, just like he had on the morning after Roman's death. Sami writhed underneath him, giggling hysterically and trying to get away from him.

"Lucas, stop!" she managed through giggles, "You're going to break the bed."

"Just like last time, right?" Lucas asked, continuing to tickle her, "The bed won't end up being broken if you just admit the truth."

"There is no truth." Sami responded, "I am not jealous of Nicole."

Lucas kept laughing and tickling her until another thought crossed his mind. He stopped laughing and rolled off Sami. She noticed the sudden mood change and eyed him with concern.

"What? What's wrong?" she asked him.

Lucas looked at her grimly, "I forgot that I didn't tell you the last part of what happened with Nicole and I."

Sami rolled her eyes, "Do I really want to know? If you start describing your little one night stand with Nicole, I am going to scream-"

"I wouldn't do that, you'd enjoy it too much." before Sami could argue, Lucas continued, "The condom broke when we were- um, you know. And now I'm kind of afraid of that-"

"I get the idea." Sami sighed loudly, "But look on the bright side, there's a possibility you and Nicole could make a very cute baby."

"Can't you be serious about this?" Lucas asked, "I thought if I confided in you, you could sort of help me out a little. It wouldn't kill you to help me figure out a way out of this."

"You could always push her down a flight of stairs and make her lose the baby. If she has one, I mean." Lucas stared at Sami in shock.

"I don't want to kill my baby." he said.

"You don't even know if Nicole is going to have your baby yet." Sami reminded him, "And if you don't want your baby to die, then there is nothing anyone can do. You're stuck. Then everyone will find out about you and Nicole's baby and they'll all know what a man-whore you really are."

"Don't call me that." Lucas snapped, beginning to get frustrated, "I would take it back if I could."

"I just don't know why Nicole would go to you out of all the people she could have chosen to seduce." Sami mused, "Maybe it's because she knows that you're still sexually attracted to her."

"I am not!" Lucas argued, "Look, I don't feel anything for Nicole anymore. I just wanted her to leave me alone. There's someone else now. I'm just not sure if they feel the same way." he shut his mouth after saying that, not knowing how that could have slipped out. Sami was staring at him and he hoped that she wouldn't be able to tell how he felt about her.

"Someone else?" Sami repeated, "Who is it?"

He grinned at her, "I'm not going to say another word." he told her, deciding that she didn't think highly enough of herself to tell that she was the only woman he wanted.

"It's Mimi, isn't it?" Sami's eyes were wide, "I knew there had to a reason for you looking so happy when Mimi asked us to stay in the loft with her. I bet you wish you were sharing a bed with her and not me. Wow, if Rex ever finds out, he is going to kick you're a-"

"It's not Mimi." Lucas interrupted.

"Please tell me it isn't that Jan girl." Sami's nose wrinkled up slightly at the thought of Jan.

"Who?" Lucas asked.

"Belle, Shawn, Phillip and Mimi all knew her. They hated her. I ran into her and she begged me not to tell anyone she was back in town. I got a large amount of cash out of her but other than you, I haven't told anyone she's back."

"It's not her." Lucas replied.

Sami sighed, "Can you at least tell me if it's someone I know?" she asked. Lucas nodded and she continued guessing names.

"If you tell me that it is Lexie, I'll freak out." Sami warned him.

Lucas chuckled, "Not her either."

"You're really enjoying this aren't you?" Sami thought about it for a moment, "It's Mimi's mom. Wait, never mind. If you wanted her, she's so easy you wouldn't have a bit of trouble getting her into bed with you."

Lucas looked horrified, "Is my taste in women really that bad?" he asked. Don't insult yourself, Sami, he added silently.

"Oh yeah. You were in love with Nicole and my sister, Carrie. I don't need to go on. And if it's not Bonnie, then it has to be........" she stared at him in dismay, "Lucas, are you gay? Are you in love with a guy?"

"Sami, I thought you knew me better than that." Lucas said, amazed that she would actually consider the idea of him being gay before she guessed that she was the one that he was in love with. But when he looked into her eyes, he could tell that she wanted to hear him say it, not just guess that she was the one he loved and give him the easy way out. So he sat back and let her continue guessing names.

"Brady?" was her first guess and Lucas shook his head.

"Shawn?"

"Nope."

"Since you're related to Rex, it can't be him. What about Bart? You used to work for Tony, so you know who he is, right? Wait, I know who it is! It's Tony!"

"You're really starting to scare me." Lucas told her, "Just give up, you're never going to guess it."

"I'll let it go for the time being. Hey, we're missing the Lion King! Damn, I hope we didn't miss the part where Scar gets eaten. It's my favourite part."

"Why?" Lucas asked.

"Scar reminds me of Victor and John, only less evil." she said cheerfully, grabbing Lucas' hand and pulling him off the bed. Sami was glad that she found out Lucas' secret was, even if she hated the idea of Lucas sleeping with Nicole, she would never admit that to anyone though. But now that she was sure that Lucas didn't murder Chloe, she could trust him again.

  
  


"Hi, Cassie. What are you doing here?" Brady asked her, noticing her sitting on the couch in the front room. He had just got back from hearing Lucas and Sami's conversation. Cassie smiled at him when her eyes met his.

"Phillip wanted to come over to see his dad about something." Cassie informed Brady, "I didn't have anything better to do, so I came along. I wanted to see how you were doing. I hope you don't mind."

"Not at all." Brady was still distracted. He couldn't stop thinking about Lucas' words back at the loft. Then he remembered something, "But Victor is at meetings all night. I thought Phillip would have known that."

"He went right up the stairs and he's been up there for twenty minutes now." Cassie stated, a confused look on her face, "I don't know why he'd lie about that."

"Well, no matter what he's doing here, I'm glad to see you. I just found out something horrible and I need to talk to someone about it." Brady replied.

"What happened?" Cassie asked.

"It's Nicole. And Lucas." Brady took a deep breath, "I heard them talking and I know that they killed Chloe."

"Lucas?" Cassie repeated doubtfully, "What exactly did you hear them saying?"

"I heard Lucas telling Sami about it. He said something like, 'I didn't want to do it but she wouldn't let it go. I decided to help her out. I thought after that she would leave me alone but then it went wrong'." Brady told her.

Cassie nodded slowly, "But he never actually said anything about killing Chloe?" Cassie checked. When Brady shook his head, a little smile crept onto Cassie's face, "Trust me, Lucas might not be completely innocent but I know him. He didn't kill anyone."

"How can you be sure?" Brady questioned her.

"Well, Lucas and I used to talk sometimes and I know he isn't the murdering type. I know the type of guy he is and knowing that I can probably tell you what he and Nicole were doing that night."

"What?" Brady asked eagerly.

"The only thing they were doing was probably...... each other." she finished, "It doesn't take much to seduce Lucas into jumping into bed with you. Sex is more Lucas' style than murder."

"You sound like you know this from personal experience." Brady teased her, "Is there something you're not telling me, Cassie?" he had intended for it to be a joke and he was shocked when she started blushing furiously.

"God, you didn't sleep with your half-brother, did you?" he asked, horrified.

"No and shut up." Cassie continued blushing, "Okay, I almost did but Rex and Mimi walked in before we could go all the way. But don't tell anyone because Lucas would kill me if he knew that I was telling people that. I don't really like talking about it either and I guess you can kind of tell why."

"Yeah." Brady nodded sympathetically.

"The worst part is, that's the farthest I've ever gone with a guy." she laughed bitterly, "You know your love life sucks when the closest thing you've had for a lover is your half brother."

"Cassie, you're beautiful. If you didn't try so hard, you could find a guy that really cares about you. It's going to happen, I know it will. One day, someone is going to notice what an amazing person you are and then they're going to fall for you." Brady promised her. She looked up at him hopefully.

"I hope so." she whispered, "I'd love that." Brady clasped one of her hands in his and he realized that he had stopped thinking about Chloe for the longest time since her death. Cassie took his mind off all the bad things in his life. Even though he probably hadn't spend over two hours talking to her in his entire life, he really enjoyed being around her. He hoped that, with time, they would become closer friends and start spending even more time together.


	10. Chapter Ten

Chapter Ten

  
  


Mimi and Sami were alone in the loft for the first time since Sami, Lucas and Will had moved in. Lucas went to see Kate but would be coming back soon. Will was at school and Shawn, Rex, Phillip and Cassie were all off doing their own thing. Mimi had gone outside for a few minutes and when she came back she dropped something on the counter.

"There's a present here for you, Sami. I don't know who it's from." she called. Sami pulled herself off the couch and went over to examine the gift carefully. There was a bright red helium balloon with the words 'Thinking of You' splashed across it. The balloon was tied to a thin, white box with her name written on the corner. She quickly unwrapped it and pulled it open. On top of a black purse sat a folded note.

"I wonder who this is from." she muttered to herself. Opening the card, she read the words aloud, "Samantha Gene Brady, I enjoyed our last meeting. I'm looking forward to the day when we meet again. I know you'll enjoy it too." closing the card, she frowned. The card wasn't signed. Looking down at the purse again she realized that it was the purse she had been carrying the night she had supposedly ran into the killer. Her heart rate spiked as she picked it up with trembling hands.

It was light, obviously the killer had cleaned it out before returning it to her. She barely managed to get the zipper open but finally she unzipped it and looked inside. As she had suspected, it was pretty much empty. There was something in it, a little piece of material. The cloth looked to be originally white but it was stained dark red, almost brown colour. She inhaled sharply when she realized it was covered in blood. Even though the blood was dried on, she could smell the metallic odour of it.

A picture suddenly moved to the front of her mind. She saw the woman, who she now knew was Chloe, lying on the ground, eyes widen open and her mouth forming a scream she would never be able to scream. She saw one person but all she could focus on in her mind was the knife in their hand. Suddenly, a second person flashed through her mind and all she could really make out was the smile, as evil and twisted as each of the murders had been. Whoever they were, they wanted her dead next.

"Sami, what's wrong?" Mimi came into the kitchen, looking concerned. Sami stepped away from the counter, dropping both the scrap of clothing and the purse on the ground. Finally she recovered from the shock and started screaming.

  
  


"Shawn, what are you doing here?" Phillip asked, nervously shifting from one foot to the other. He didn't want Shawn to come inside his house because Nicole was there and he didn't want Shawn to know he was helping her. They had been trying to find a way to catch the killer but hadn't made any real plans yet.

"Well, I was down at the police station talking to my parents." Shawn began, "Then they got a call from Mimi and had to go down to her loft right away. Apparently, the killer sent Sami something and she freaked out. They think they might get some leads and I thought you might want to come down there with me."

Phillip's mind was racing as he thought about Shawn's words, "Definitely. Come on, Nicole. We're going over to see if we can help the police find any clues about the killer." he didn't even realize that he had let Shawn know that Nicole was in his house. Nicole came out the front door and Shawn watched in amazement as she and Phillip hurried down to Phillip's car. After Shawn got over the shock of seeing his friend and Nicole together, he rushed over to get into his own car.

After driving for around ten minutes, they rushed up to the loft. Hope was trying to comfort Sami, who was sobbing uncontrollably while Bo yelled at someone over his cell phone. Mimi watched the three of them helplessly.

"I don't care what you're doing! This is our main priority right now. I don't want to hear any excuses, I just want someone down here now!" Bo hung up the phone and turned to see Phillip, Shawn and Nicole standing near the entrance to the loft. They stepped further into the loft uncertainly and Bo crossed his arms over his chest, glaring at them.

"What do you think you're doing here?" he demanded, "Shawn, I told you to stay out of this."

"I couldn't." Shawn protested, "Dad, I really want to help you with this investigation. This animal killed Belle and Chloe. I want to help make sure that there is justice."

Phillip stepped forward, "I want to help too. I've been trained to do this and I know I can be a big help with this investigation-"

"Phillip, it's nice of you to offer but we don't need any help." Bo responded, "The Salem PD can handle this on our own and both you and Shawn are too inexperienced to deal with this."

Sami stopped crying and looked up to see Nicole standing next to Phillip, "What are you doing hear?" she cried furiously.

Before Nicole could reply, Sami flung herself at Nicole, slamming one fist into Nicole's left eye. Shawn grabbed Sami to stop her from attacking Nicole anymore and Phillip helped Nicole off the floor. Nicole was holding her eye but Phillip could tell it was already beginning to bruise.

Phillip winced, "That's gonna need some ice."

Nicole gave Phillip a dirty look, "Thanks for the all the help." she said sarcastically.

"I'll get some ice." Mimi volunteered, hurrying over to the freezer. Sami was struggling, trying to pull away from Shawn but Shawn wouldn't let her escape.

"Let me at that slut!" Sami yelled, "Let me give her what she deserves."

Nicole looked up and made a move towards Sami but Phillip grabbed her before she could go anywhere near Sami, "Let me go! She hit me first, I deserve to hit her back at least once."

Phillip held onto her arm, "No, Nicole. Be the bigger person."

Nicole sighed with annoyance, "Fine. It didn't hurt anyway!" she yelled at Sami. She grabbed the ice pack from Mimi and smacked it against the affected area of her eye. Once the ice made contact with the bruised skin, she yelped in pain and Sami almost smiled.

Hope looked distressed, "Sami, I know you're upset but I don't think it's fair for you to take it out innocent people." she chided her niece gently.

"She is not innocent!" Sami shouted just as Lucas and Rex walked through the door. Lucas looked from Sami to Bo to Nicole, a look of confusion crossing over his face. He noticed Nicole's eye and frowned.

"What happened here?" he asked. Nicole looked away and Phillip shot his half-brother a look that told Lucas that he knew about what happened with Nicole. Nicole began backing away, pulling Phillip along with her. Once Nicole had pulled him out of the loft, both of them began walking towards Phillip's car.

"I still can't believe that you and Lucas-" Nicole cut Phillip off before he could finish.

"Don't even bring that up." she huffed, "I still can't believe I got so desperate I went to him. It's pathetic."

"How did you get him to do that?" Phillip asked carefully, "I could have sworn he's in love with Sami."

"He is." they got into the car and Nicole checked her reflection in the mirror, "This black eye is going to need a lot of cover-up. From the looks of things, Sami feels the same way. They just can't tell how the other person feels and won't admit their feelings."

"So how did you get him to agree to it?" Phillip questioned her again.

"He put up a fight. A lot more of a fight than I expected him to." Nicole confessed, "I should have given up after trying for half an hour but then he got me angry for refusing and I felt like I had to make him do it. So I told him if he didn't, then I would get Brandon to come back to Salem and get Brandon to make Sami forget that he existed."

"That's harsh." Phillip shook his head in disbelief, "You really know how to hit a person where it hurts."

"I know." Nicole smiled proudly, "I knew if I said that, he'd do it. He didn't even stop to think that even Brandon's favourite sister couldn't get Brandon to come back to the town where Sami lives. Brandon is so set against ever having anything to do with her again but I think I'm the only one who realizes just how set against it he is."

Phillip's silence was unnerving so Nicole spoke again, "I always find a way to get what I want. Does that scare you, Phillip?"

He gave her a small smile, "It should. But it doesn't. At least, not yet." Nicole sat back against the leather seat, smiling triumphantly as Phillip began the drive back to his home.

  
  


"So what does this mean?" Mimi asked anxiously after Bo had finished speaking.

"Isn't it obvious?" Rex's eyes were troubled, "The killer is showing us that they can get close to Sami and that it's only a matter of time before they take care of her for good. They want to mess with her mind before killing her though. I think they're furious that she upset their last murder. This killer, or killers, strikes me as an obsessive perfectionist."

"Should we move somewhere else?" Lucas asked, too worried to notice that he had wrapped one arm around Sami's shoulders and was holding her against him.

"I think that's what the killer is expecting you to do." Bo interrupted, "Maybe you should just stay here. The loft is kind of a public place. Mimi's here and Shawn and Rex live right next door. Wait it out for the time being. Unless the killer tries something else."

"Something else?" Mimi repeated in a whisper, her eyes wide.

"I can't take this." Sami murmured, "I can't." pulling away from Lucas, she sprinted out of the loft.

"I'll follow her." Lucas told Bo and Hope, before rushing out the door to the loft to go after Sami. Lucas was worried that the killer was still in the area and refused to let Sami fall into his trap. He would get to her before the killer had a chance, he would make sure of it.


	11. Chapter Eleven

Chapter Eleven

  
  


With shaking fingers, Sami pressed the key into the lock on her car door. After unlocking the door, she yanked it open and climbed inside. She didn't know what she was doing, she just had to get away from them. She had always tried to be in control of her own life but the killers were taking that control away. Everything was spinning out of control and she was scared. She didn't know how to handle the vagueness of her future. She couldn't even take a guess at what was going to happen next.

Her fingers moved clumsily along the key-ring, trying to find the right key. Finally finding it, she tried to push it into the ignition. Instead, she dropped the key-ring onto the ground.

"Dammit!" she cried, near tears. While she was fumbling around the floor for the keys, she heard the car door on her side click open. She froze, wishing she had remembered to lock her door. Slowly, she turned around to face whoever had opened the door.

She sighed with relief when she saw who it was, "God, Lucas! You almost gave me a heart attack."

"Sorry." Lucas was instantly contrite and he motioned for her to scoot over. She shuffled over to the passenger seat, allowing him to get into the driver's seat. He noticed the keys clenched tightly in her hand. He pried her fingers open and extracted the key-ring, but not before noticing the indents the keys had made on her palm. Lucas took one look on her face and saw how close she was coming to losing her composure.

Flinging the keys onto the dashboard, Lucas searched for the right words to say. He wanted to comfort her but he didn't know what she needed to hear at that moment. Since nothing came to mind, he wordlessly extended his arms. Sami responded to the gesture immediately, scooting into his arms. She broke down, tears spilling over her cheeks. He let his arms encircle her waist, hating himself for not knowing what to say. He wanted her to stop crying. He hated seeing her cry almost more than he hated anything else.

He sat with her for a few minutes, letting her cry, the back of her head nestled against his chest. When she had finally regained enough of her composure, she pressed the side of her face into his chest, looking up at him.

"What's going to happen to me, Lucas?" she asked, "Am I going to die?" her face was soaked with tears and he brushed them away gently with the pads of his thumbs. He wanted to promise that no one was going to hurt her, not while he was around. It was one promise he would do everything in his power to keep.

"I'm always going to be here for you." he told her, "I'm hardly ever going to let you out of my sight. I'll always make sure that you're safe when I'm not with you. You are not going to die."

She sighed, pressing her cheek against his, "I don't want to die. I have too much to live for. Like Will and my mom and my brother and......." And you, was what she had wanted to say. Just sitting there alone with him, having him hold her like this made everything feel more peaceful. He promised her that he wouldn't let her die and she believed him. For the first time in years, she completely trusted him. He had helped her so much already. He wouldn't let Will's mother die. He loved Will too much to do that.

Lucas seemed to sense she was through talking about the killer and changed the subject, "Are you ready to go back inside now?" he asked tentatively.

Sami shook her head, her blonde hair swishing back and forth in front of him, "Can we just stay out here for a little longer? I don't want to face my aunt and uncle right now. I don't want to think about everything in my life that's going wrong."

Lucas was glad to have an excuse to keep holding her, "We can stay out here for as long as you want." he responded, feeling her relax even more against his body. He dreamed about this all the time- having Sami alone, all to himself. His urge to kiss her was stronger than ever but he wouldn't. Sami had made it clear that there were not one, but two killers on the loose. So until both killers were caught, he would hold off on making any moves to win her heart.

  
  


Cassie sat on the couch next to Brady, their conversation interrupted by the loud, angry voices of Victor and Nicole. She leaned against the couch, listening to the angry exchange between Brady's grandparents.

"I mean it, Nicole! You will stay away from Phillip or I will make you pay." Victor yelled angrily from the other room.

"You can't tell me what to do!" Nicole shot back, "We aren't doing anything wrong. We're just friends."

Victor let out a loud, disbelieving snort, "You expect me to buy that? Just the other day you were talking about how you were going to throw yourself at Bo, Shawn and Phillip to get back at me."

"I am a grown woman. And regardless of what you think, you do not own me, Victor Kiriakas!" Nicole said in a haughty voice, "I will not let you push me around anymore."

"Do you really have a choice in the matter?" Victor demanded, his voice filled with an air of extreme confidence, "I have so much dirt on you it isn't even funny. I am ten times as powerful as you are!"

"You're all talk!" Nicole retorted, "You've threatened me over and over. You never live up to your threats. I don't know why you even bother."

"No one has ever provoked me as much as you have, Nicole." Victor reminded her, "You are an adulteress, you have done everything possible to ruin me. You have thrown yourself at my children and grandchildren. Not to mention you killed my grandson's soul mate. There will be justice, I promise you."

"You're only using words." Nicole shouted, "You don't scare me one bit. And for the last time, I did not kill Chloe! Just wait until I find out who really killed her. Then you'll be sorry."

Nicole heels clicked on the floor, closing the conversation between herself and Victor by walking away without giving him a chance to respond. Cassie turned to Brady, shaking her head in amazement.

A few moments later, Victor entered the room Brady and Cassie were sitting in. Victor smiled warmly at his grandson but when he noticed Cassie sitting next to him, his smile faded and he gave a brief nod in her direction. Without a word, he turned and left the room. Cassie felt her heart sink. She knew that Victor didn't care for her or approve of her friendship with Brady.

She wondered if he didn't like her because she still considered herself a Dimera. Or maybe it was because of what a lot of people in town thought of her. She knew it was very likely that he considered her a slut, there were few people that didn't think of her in that way. Hell, she had spent a night in jail for prostitution. She hadn't been guilty of it but still. Cassie knew she couldn't be upset that people thought she was a slut. The only reason they thought that was because she pretty much begged them to.

She wanted to change that though. There was a good chance that Brady was right. If she didn't try so hard, maybe she could find a guy that liked her for who she was. Maybe if she totally stopped overdoing it, she could get the one guy she wanted. She and Brady had became really close over the last few weeks and only a few days ago he had even kissed her. It had been a short, soft kiss, nothing major. He hadn't mentioned the kiss at all after that day.

"You've seemed to be handling Chloe's death a lot better these days." Cassie remarked, "I bet it's still hard for you though."

Brady ran a hand through his short hair and nodded, "I'm so angry. I'm angry at whoever did this to her but I'm even more angry at myself."

Cassie looked at him in surprise, "Why?"

"I never told anyone this but I stopped loving Chloe a while ago." Cassie's mouth dropped open in shock, "I faked it for a while because I thought it would keep Nicole from hitting on me. Then, I kept faking it when my grandad started talking about bringing Chloe back to Salem because I didn't want to hurt his feelings by rejecting his offer. When Chloe got back, I tried convincing myself that I still loved her but I didn't. And now she's gone and I never managed to get up the courage to tell her the truth."

"That's awful. I don't think you should be so hard on yourself though." Cassie knew it was selfish but his words made her feel somewhat elated. If Chloe had died with Brady not loving her then it was more likely that Brady would move on sooner. She realized what she really was thinking was that Brady would have more of a chance of falling for her. She inwardly scolded herself for thinking like that. Even if Brady hadn't wanted Chloe then, that didn't mean that she would have any more of a chance of him wanting her now. She just wanted to believe that she did.


	12. Chapter Twelve

Chapter Twelve

  
  


Sami prepared to open the door to the loft, then stopped and turned around to face Lucas instead. Her face was no longer swollen or red from crying, she just looked tired. Really tired.

"Thank you." she said simply, "For staying out there with me."

"You're welcome." he responded, reaching out to put a hand on her shoulder, "I wouldn't have left you out there alone. Will couldn't go on without you, you know that, don't you?" he knew deep down he meant himself and not Will. She would never be able to tell though. He lowered his head and kissed her forehead. Instinctively, she lifted her head to meet his eyes. Before he could stop himself, his lips moved down her face, finally resting lightly on her lips. The kiss only lasted for a few seconds. But he felt her arms slide around his neck and he felt her respond to his kiss and that was it. He had been fighting a losing battle from the start. He was surprised he had lasted for as long as he had.

His mouth crashed down onto hers a second time, only this time it was harder, with more urgency. Sami stood on her tip-toes, pulling his head even further down. One part of her mind was screaming at her to stop. She wasn't supposed to be kissing him. It was Lucas Roberts. It was so wrong but it felt right. She didn't even know what he was to her anymore- he wasn't her enemy but she had once promised herself that she would never consider him a friend after everything he had done to her.

She pushed the feelings aside and parted her lips slightly, allowing his tongue to move inside her mouth. Lucas explored the inside of her mouth with his tongue, savouring the way the soft skin on the inside of her mouth felt. Sami's fingernails dug into his back as he lifted one of her legs so that he could wrap it around his waist. After pressing her against the wall, he lifted her other leg up, hearing two soft thuds. It took him a minute to realize that Sami's shoes had fallen off. Well, screw the shoes, he thought to himself. That was the most intelligent thought he could manage. Because when he kissed Sami, he couldn't think. He lost all control and got completely caught up in kissing her. Which is why it was so hard to stop. He didn't want to stop. Ever.

Her legs tightened around his waist. The wall was so cold and stiff compared to Lucas' warm body that formed to hers. His tongue continued to stroke the inside of her mouth and she let out a small moan. Lucas felt the moan vibrate against his mouth and found himself wanting even more of her.

A door down the hall slammed, bringing them back into the real world, right outside the door to Mimi's loft. Lucas lowered her back to the ground and Sami tried not to let her legs give out on her. She picked up both shoes off the floor and slid them back onto her feet as Lucas comprehended the enormity of what he had just done. He had told himself he wouldn't give in, that he wouldn't kiss her. And now he had. It hadn't even been a short, sweet kiss, it had been a long, hard kiss letting out all the desire he had held inside for so long. Big mistake. He looked over at Sami, who was straightening out her sweater and braced himself for her reaction.

"God, I don't know what got into me. I shouldn't have done that." he whispered and when Sami finally looked up at him, her eyes were blazing indignantly.

"Of course you shouldn't have!" she hissed angrily, "How dare you kiss me against my free will? When are you going to learn that I don't like it when you do that?" it was a struggle to make her words sound filled with conviction but somehow she pulled it off.

Lucas felt himself growing angry, "Hey, I might have kissed you but you can't say that you didn't kiss me back."

"Yes, I can because I didn't kiss you back." Sami lied, hoping he would leave it alone.

"Right, so you just stood there like an inflatable doll with my tongue in your mouth?" Lucas retorted, his voice dripping with sarcasm..

Sami's mouth dropped open, "I can't believe you're comparing me to a blow-up doll!" she exclaimed, "How do you know so much about them anyway? Do you have one, Lucas? Do you keep one stashed under your bed or in your closet?"

"Blow-up dolls seem more your style than mine." Lucas snapped.

"No, I bet you do have one. And if you don't have one, then someone needs to do you a favour and get you one. Because from the looks of things, your sex drive is in overdrive! Whether it's having sex with the biggest whore in Salem or lashing out at any woman within arm's reach, all the signs are there. You need a blow-up doll!"

"Shut up, it was a mistake okay?" Lucas shouted, "Look, if I promise you it won't happen again can we just drop it?"

"Fine." Sami conceded, still angry, "And it better not happen again. Mimi or Shawn or Rex could have walked out of the loft at any minute and jumped to conclusions. They might actually think that their schemes to get us together were working. Now if you excuse me, I have to get ready for the party tonight."

Without another word, she walked through the door of the loft and shut the door behind her. There was going to be a party celebrating the anniversary of the Blue Note that night. Since Mimi was going with Rex and Shawn was going alone, the three of them had finally convinced Sami to go with Lucas. Lucas realized that Sami had never made him make the promise. He smiled to himself, realizing that was a good thing. Because, unlike the other promise he had made to Sami, the promise to keep his hands off Sami was one he wasn't sure he could keep.

  
  


"Cassie, I wanted to ask you something." Brady said as Cassie stood at the front door to the Kiriakas Mansion, getting ready to leave.

"Go ahead." Cassie smiled encouragingly at him.

"Since I'm the manager at the Blue Note and the big party is tonight, I was wondering if you wanted to go with me." he told her and Cassie felt herself fighting off the huge grin threatening to spread over her face. She couldn't believe that Brady was asking her to be his date. She had planned to go alone and hang out with Shawn and Phillip, who she thought were going alone as well.

"I'd love to." she answered, trying to keep calm. The idea of going on a date with Brady made her feel ecstatic. Even if he just wanted to go to the party with her as friends, it was still better than nothing. Because no matter how much she tried to pretend she wasn't, she was falling for Brady Black.

"Great." he grinned at her, "I'll pick you up at six-thirty, okay? I have to be there a little early to help set everything up."

"Six-thirty is perfect." Cassie was already trying to figure out what she was going to wear. She wanted to look perfect for her first date with Brady. She would go over to the loft right away and ask Mimi for help deciding what to wear. She and Mimi had became better friends after Belle's death and Cassie was glad she was finally getting along with her brother's girlfriend.

Nicole watched Cassie leave from her place at the middle of the stairs. Brady and Cassie were so wrapped up in each other, they didn't even realize she was there. Nicole had heard Brady ask Cassie to be his date and felt resentment towards Cassie surge through her. There goes my date for tonight, she thought to herself. Then she realized that it could be a good thing she didn't have the chance to go with Brady. She got more sick of Brady and his attitude towards her every day. He would have been a total bore if he had taken her to the party. Now that he was going with Cassie, she could go with someone else.

She hurried back up the stairs and went into her room. Picking up the sleek, cordless phone, she began dialling the number Phillip had given her.

"Phillip, it's Nicole." she spoke into the phone once Phillip picked up.

"Hey, Nicole. What's up?" he asked. He sounded happy to hear from her, Nicole observed. That was good.

"I was just wondering if you had a date for the party at the Blue Note tonight. Because if you don't, I thought we could go together if you wanted. We could talk some more about how to catch the killer." Nicole said, glad she had an excuse to get him to go to the party with her.

"Actually, I don't have a date." Phillip responded, "And I think going together would be a good idea."

"Fantastic." Nicole said, trying to keep her enthusiasm contained, "Can you pick me up at seven? Victor will be gone by then, he has to go up to Titan to do some work tonight."

Phillip agreed to pick her up at that time and Nicole set the phone down. She let out a sigh of relief. She was glad that she would be able to show Brady that there were more men around for her to be with than him. He could do whatever he wanted with Cassie, she would still have Phillip, working with her to uncover the identity of the killer.


	13. Chapter Thirteen

Chapter Thirteen

  
  


Rex and Mimi entered the Blue Note with Lucas and Sami a few feet behind them. Icy wind whipped Sami's hair around her face as she tugged her jacket even closer around her body. It was so cold. She took a deep breath before taking another step, feeling slightly sick to her stomach. Tonight, she wanted to enjoy herself and forget about the killers. It was so hard though. A thought suddenly entered her mind and she gripped onto Lucas' arm fearfully.

"Lucas, what if I see the one of the killers here tonight?" she asked him, "What if one of them comes after me?"

Lucas' eyes were focussed on the hand clutching his arm when he replied, "If you see anyone that triggers a memory of that night, we'll tell your uncle Bo. He's here tonight. And no one is going to come after you because I won't let them."

Sami felt tears prick her eyelids unexpectedly. She doubted she would recognize either of the killers, even if they walked right up to her and started talking to her. That scared her. She hated the way it made her feel. Not only because it made her feel scared but because it made her feel like she needed Lucas. She didn't want to feel like that. She didn't want to feel like she needed anyone, especially not the man who had hurt her too many times to count.

Lucas noticed the unshed tears in her eyes and stroked the side of her face gently, "What's wrong, Sami?"

Tears slipped out of the corners of her eyelids and she allowed herself to relax into his arms, "I just want this to be over. I'm so tired of being afraid all the time."

"Well, I just want to you to be okay." he whispered, his hands moving caressing her back consolingly, "I know how hard this is on you but it's going to be okay soon. They're going to catch the killers and then they'll pay for everything they've put you through."

"I miss them. I miss my dad and my grandma so much." she murmured, wishing she could stop the relentless tears streaming down her face.

"I know you do. You have all along." Lucas responded softly, his breath warm against her ear, which had almost gone numb from the bitter cold.

"I keep losing the people I love. I'm afraid that I'm going to end up all alone." she confided in him, feeling his arms tightening around her. His embrace was almost too tight, as if he were trying to convince himself that she wasn't going to die by holding her as tightly as possible. She didn't mind though, it was so comforting and reassuring.

"You're never going to be alone. There are so many people that need you in their lives. They aren't going to let you go." Lucas told her.

Still crying she said in an almost hysterical voice, "Don't leave me!"

"I'm not going to." Lucas promised, "The only way I'd leave is if you asked me to. And if you asked me to leave, I'd make sure you were safe first. I'm always going to be here for you."

Sami wiped at her eyes, finally able to stop crying. She noticed Kate behind her, standing next to her car in shock at the sight of Lucas holding Sami. Sami cleared her throat and Lucas turned to see what she was looking at. Once Kate had caught her son's eye, she signalled to him frantically, trying to get him to come over and talk to her.

Sami sniffled, "I think she really wants to talk to you. I'll go inside and leave you two alone." before she could walk away, Lucas grabbed her arm.

"Are you asking me to leave?" a small smiled curved the corners of his lips.

Sami looked from Kate to Lucas, "Nope." she finally decided. She linked her arm through Lucas' and the two of them strode inside the Blue Note, leaving a furious Kate yelling after them. Sami then realized how awful her face must look.

"I have to go to the bathroom for a second." she told Lucas, "I guess I am going to have to ask you to leave now since there's no way you're following me in there."

"I won't leave." Lucas replied, "I'll wait outside the door." Sami went into the bathroom and Kate finally caught up to Lucas.

"What do you think you're doing?" she asked him angrily, "How can you let that witch take advantage of you like this?"

Lucas shot her a disgusted look, "Sami is not taking advantage of me. I am being a friend to her because after what happened to her, she really needs one."

"Don't lie to me!" Kate hissed, "You are falling for her and I am not going to stand by and watch my baby self-destruct!"

"I am not your baby." Lucas snapped, "I am a grown man and am old enough to make my own decisions."

Kate glared at the bathroom door Sami had went through, "Somehow I am going to convince you that she is trouble." Kate swore to Lucas before storming away. A few minutes later, Sami emerged from the bathroom and she and Lucas found Rex and Mimi. Rex and Mimi were sitting down at a large table with Shawn while Brady and Cassie and Phillip and Nicole were out on the dance floor. Lucas and Sami sat down across from Mimi and Rex, who exchanged knowing smiles as soon as they noticed Lucas and Sami's presence.

"What were you guys doing?" Shawn asked, with a knowing smile identical to Rex and Mimi's. Sami opened her mouth to reply but Lucas spoke up first.

"Well, there are some things that Sami and I must keep to ourselves." Lucas told the three of them, winking at Mimi. Sami watched Rex, Mimi and Shawn exchange triumphant smiles and was tempted to set them straight about what she and Lucas had really been doing. But she looked over at Lucas and saw how much he was enjoying messing with their minds and decided to keep quiet, at least for the time being.

"I didn't think I'd have so much fun tonight." Shawn confessed, "But Phillip and I have been taking turns dancing with Nicole and I'm actually enjoying myself. Brady has pretty much kept Cassie to himself so far. Those two have become really close."

Mimi beamed at Cassie, who was wearing a pale blue dress, "I helped her pick out what she was going to wear. She was so excited, I'm really happy for both her and Brady. They do make a cute couple."

"Lucas, you and Sami have to dance to the next slow song." Rex told Lucas and Mimi and Shawn nodded in agreement. It was only a few minutes until the first strains of the next slow song started. Shawn turned to Rex, giving him a little smile.

"Do you mind if I steal your girlfriend for this dance?" he asked Rex, placing one hand on Mimi's shoulder.

"Go ahead, as long as I get her for the next song." Rex responded, "I have to go talk to Tony about something. I'm glad that he was in prison while one of the murders was committed. That means he can't be the killer. I knew I couldn't have been that wrong about him." Rex stood up and made his way towards Tony. Shawn took Mimi's hand and led her out onto the dance floor. Lucas did the same with Sami. Brady was still dancing with Cassie and Phillip was still dancing with Nicole.

Lucas' arms were wrapped around Sami's waist and her arms were wrapped around his neck. She pressed her cheek against his and listened to the song. It was a country song and usually she didn't like country songs but she liked this one. The words sent a tingle down her spine and she thought about how ironic it was to be in Lucas arms as this particular song played. She remembered that Bonnie had played it a little while into Roman and Kate's wedding reception. She remembered that it was by a country singer named Toby Keith.

  
  


~*~ I got a funny feeling ~*~

~*~ The moment that your lips touched mine ~*~

~*~ Something shot right through me ~*~

~*~ My heart skipped a beat in time ~*~

  
  


The song reminded her of how she felt when Lucas had kissed her. The kiss had been everything she had ever wanted in a kiss- enough to make her toes curl, enough to knock her almost completely senseless. She didn't want to admit to anyone, not even herself, that she had kissed him back and enjoyed the kiss as much, if not more, as he had.

  
  


~*~ There's a different feel about you tonight ~*~

~*~ It's got me thinking lots of crazy things ~*~

~*~ I even think I saw a flash of light ~*~

~*~ It felt like electricity ~*~

  
  


Lucas pressed his hands into the small of Sami's back, wishing the dance never had to end. She looked so beautiful and he wanted so badly to tell her how he felt. Maybe she would even admit to feeling the same way. Anything was possible in Salem. He wanted to believe that she wanted him, needed him as much as he wanted and needed her. The urge to whisper in her ear how much he loved her was almost uncontrollable but he managed to resist. No more mistakes, he said to himself, You can't screw this up.

  
  


~*~ You shouldn't kiss me like this ~*~

~*~ Unless you mean it like that ~*~

~*~ Cause I'll just close my eyes ~*~

~*~ And I won't know where I'm at ~*~

~*~ We'll get lost on this dance floor ~*~

~*~ Spinning around and around and around ~*~

  
  


Sami pulled away from him slightly and he looked at her with question glinting in his dark eyes. Sami couldn't take it anymore. She wanted to feel the way she had when he had kissed back at the loft. Standing on her tip-toes, she kissed him softly on the lips. When she went back to dancing cheek to cheek with him, Lucas almost had to pinch himself to make sure he wasn't dreaming. Even though she had kissed him back when he had kissed her in the past, she had never actually kissed him on her own.

He hoped she wasn't just getting caught up in the song. He wanted to believe that she kissed him for the same reasons he kissed her. He wouldn't give himself false hope though. He wanted to hear her tell him that she wanted to be with him. He even wanted to hear her say she loved him.

Deciding not to say anything and just continue holding her like nothing had happened, he closed his eyes and imagined that he and Sami were the only ones in the room. It worked for as long as he kept his eyes shut. But when he opened them, he looked straight into his mother's eyes, who was shooting a death glare into Sami's back. He realized that she had seen Sami kiss him.

  
  


~*~ They're all watching us now ~*~

~*~ They think we're falling in love ~*~

~*~ They'd never believe we're just friends ~*~

~*~ When you kiss me like this ~*~

~*~ I think you mean it like that ~*~

~*~ And if you do baby kiss me again ~*~

  
  


Seeing Sami kiss her son made her feel sick. She was sitting with John and Marlena, who had also witnessed Sami's last action. Like Kate, they stared at Sami in shock. Kate turned to John and Marlena, her eyes blazing.

"Marlena, can you please do something about your daughter?" Kate asked, her voice thick with irritation, "She is getting back at me by seducing Lucas and it is killing me to watch her do this to him."

Marlena looked hard at Kate, "I don't think that's what's happening at all." she smiled and her eyes crinkled at the corners, "I think that Sami has finally found a new man."

"She's right, Kate." John spoke up, "It looks to me like Sami and Lucas are in love."

Kate's nostrils flared and she shook her head, "Sami doesn't know what love is. And I am going to do everything I can to keep her from hurting Lucas."

  
  


~*~ Everybody swears we make the perfect pair ~*~

~*~ But dancing is as far as it goes ~*~

~*~ Girl you never moved me ~*~

~*~ Quite the way you move tonight ~*~

~*~ I just wanted you to know ~*~

~*~ I just wanted you to know ~*~

  
  


Shawn and Mimi had also been watching Lucas and Sami. Once Mimi saw Sami kiss Lucas, she turned back to Shawn, a big smile on her face.

"It's so sweet." Mimi said softly, "I knew they wouldn't be able to resist each other with you, me, Rex, Phillip and Will all working together."

Shawn grinned too, "It was bound to happen one day. There aren't two people that care about each other more than Lucas and Sami do."

"I guess they were supposed to be together all along." Mimi turned her attention to her other friends, "What about Phillip and Nicole? And Brady and Cassie? How do you think that's going to turn out?"

Shawn looked thoughtful, "They seem to make each other happy. I guess we're just going to have to see how it turns out." he replied.

  
  


The song ended just as Bo's PDA began beeping. Bo took it out of his pocket and quickly looked at the message. It looked like something the killer would send. There were three silhouettes of people. Slowly, the silhouettes filled in until they turned into pictures of Sami, Nicole and Cassie. After the pictures came up, a dark red '1' covered Sami's picture, a dark red '2' covered Nicole's picture and a dark red '3' covered Cassie's picture. Hope leaned over to see what was on the PDA and let out a loud gasp.

People noticed the shocked expressions on Bo and Hope's faces and hurried over to see what they were looking at. Brady saw the picture on the PDA and turned to Nicole, an accusing look on his face.

"You just can't leave me alone, can you?" he yelled, loud enough to catch everyone in the Blue Note's attention, "You killed Chloe because you wanted me. You're going to kill Sami because she saw you that night, you put your own picture up to make you look innocent and you're getting ready to kill Cassie too! For a while I thought you might be innocent but this proves I was right about you all along."

Phillip, Sami, Lucas and Nicole pushed through the crowd to see the picture on the PDA. Nicole looked at Brady with a horror-stricken expression on her face after seeing the message.

"Brady, you can't really think that I-" Nicole began but Phillip cut her off.

"Let's let Brady cool off, okay, Nicole? We'll just go outside and give him some space." Phillip began pulling Nicole away, giving Brady a dirty look, before leaving the building. Cassie went over to Brady and Brady wrapped his arms around her. Nicole had to behind all this. There was no one else who would want to kill Cassie. And there was no way in hell he was going to let Nicole take someone else away from him. Not this time.


	14. Chapter Fourteen

Chapter Fourteen

  
  


Cassie hadn't seen the message on the PDA and Brady's reaction to the message confused her. After she and Brady moved out of their embrace, her eyes met his and she eyed him curiously.

"What was on the PDA, Brady? What's wrong?" she asked, wondering what message the killer had sent. She was aware the killer sent messages to the Salem PD through those devices because of her brother's plans to set a trap for the killer involving the PDA's.

"Cassie-" he stopped himself from speaking, took a deep breath and went on, "The killer sent a message saying that there would be three more victims. The first was Sami, the second was Nicole and the third was you."

Cassie's eyes widened at the news, "But how? I don't know anything about who the killer is. Why would anyone want to kill me?"

"Chloe hadn't known who the killer was either." Brady reminded her, "Which is why I'm so sure that Nicole has to be behind this. She's been chasing after me for a long time. That's why she killed Chloe, to get rid of the competition. She wants to kill Sami because Sami knows something. And now she's getting ready to kill you too because she can see how I feel about you." Cassie felt her breath catch after he said that. Maybe there was a possibility that he wanted her after all.

"But Nicole's picture was on there too, before mine was." Cassie responded, "She can't be in on the killings."

"Yes she can." Brady told her, "She's just trying to clear her name by victimizing herself. The killer isn't going to come after her because she is the killer. And if she isn't the killer, then she got someone to do it for her."

Cassie could tell how badly Brady wanted to believe that Nicole was the killer and didn't want to wreck his illusion. But she didn't feel like she had a choice, "Brady, Nicole was with Phillip the entire night. There is no way she could be responsible. Besides, don't you think that making herself look like a victim is going too far, even for her?"

"She's smart. She knows that if people feel sorry for her, they won't accuse her of being the killer." Brady shook his head stubbornly. Cassie sighed.

"I can see that I'm not going to get anywhere with you." she told him, "I guess the only way you'll be convinced that Nicole is innocent is when they find the real killer. And I promise, I'm not going anywhere. The killer isn't going to get me."

"I'm glad you're handling this so well." Brady said softly, squeezing her hand. Cassie tried to smile and look unaffected but the truth was, inwardly she was not handling it well at all. She had been named the target of a very powerful and successful serial killer. That scared her so much it wasn't even funny. She didn't feel safe anymore.

It felt like she had been picked as one of the next targets out of nowhere. Sami and even Nicole were involved in the killings, at least somewhat. Sami was the police department's only witness and Nicole was a suspect, not to mention she lived in the same house as the last victim. She didn't feel that she had any connections. Still, even if she was really scared, she wouldn't let it show. Not to Brady, not to Rex, not to anyone.

  
  


Phillip pushed the heat on full blast, letting it warm the icy interior of the car, "Man, it's cold." he said. Nicole was playing with some stray strands of blonde hair, looking distracted. Phillip reached over and brushed some of the hair out of her eyes.

"I'm sorry Brady said those things to you." he told her, "He's really angry about what happened to Belle and Chloe, he just needs someone to blame. He doesn't really think that you're the killer."

"I think he does." Nicole whispered, "No matter what I do, he is always going to think I am guilty. And whoever is targeting Cassie is making me look even more guilty. I know I wanted Brady but I didn't want him that much. Okay, maybe I did but I still wouldn't have killed over it-"

"Sh, it's okay." Phillip shushed her and Nicol realized that she was rambling. Phillip sat in silence for a second.

"You know," Phillip said thoughtfully, "You're right about it looking like someone wanting to frame you. We should work with that. Is there anyone you can think of that would want to do this to you?"

"I have a lot of enemies." Nicole admitted, "I think it could be Victor. Or Sami or Kate."

Phillip nodded, thinking about it for a moment, "I don't think it's any of them though. My dad brought Chloe back to Salem to make Brady happy. There is no way he would kill her. If he wanted to really make you suffer, there were more productive ways he could have done it. I don't think it's Sami either because she seems really freaked out about all this killing. Besides, she got attacked in an alley by the killer around Christmastime. Sami might be an ace liar, but she isn't that good. As for my mom, she wouldn't threaten to kill her daughter. She just found out that she is Cassie's mother and is trying to bond with her. The last thing she would want to do is scare her to death."

By the time he had finished speaking, Nicole had thought of another thing, "And the PDA showed that I was one of the targets too. If someone was really trying to set me up, they wouldn't have sent a message indicating that I was a target. I know Brady jumped to the conclusion that I had done it to make myself look innocent but I don't think anyone else believes that. It isn't very logical."

"Brady hasn't made very make sense these days." Phillip agreed, shaking his head sympathetically, "I feel so bad for him. I know he must feel so horrible right now. I'm glad Cassie is there for him."

"Right, Cassie." Nicole repeated, barely managing to choke out the words. Phillip noticed this and stared into her eyes intently.

"Nicole, can I ask you one more thing?" he asked and Nicole nodded, "Are you jealous of Cassie? Do you wish that you were the one in there with him instead of her?" He held his breath as he waited for her to reply. For some reason, it was extremely important to him for her to say no. He silently pleaded with her to say no, his eyes still boring into hers inquisitively.

Nicole had to think about it for a minute. She really did care about Brady and she had loved the way he used to treat her like he really cared about her. Used to, was the key word though. He had stopped acting like he cared the minute he laid eyes on Chloe after her return to Salem. He treated her worse after he started thinking she was the killer. Then there was Phillip, who had been nothing but incredibly nice to her ever since Brady had accused her of being the killer. And one look at Phillip told her that he was asking her to do more than just answer his questions, he was asking her to make a choice- between him and Brady.

"No, I'm not." she answered in a firm voice, "Brady let me play second-best to Chloe right from the start. I wanted to believe he was getting over her but he still wouldn't choose me. Now he has Cassie and I really don't care anymore. I think it's time to forget about him and start thinking about someone else."

Phillip smiled at her, letting out the breath he hadn't even realized he had been holding in. He leaned in towards her and Nicole closed her eyes, waiting for the soft touch of his lips against hers. It never happened though. Phillip pulled away at last moment, reminding himself that this was his step-mother. He turned the heat off and looked towards the entrance of the Blue Note.

"We should go back in." he said, "I think Brady has had enough time to cool off." Nicole nodded and began following Phillip back up to the Blue Note. She was disappointed that he hadn't ended up kissing her. Still, she knew that if she had anything to say about it, there would be plenty of other opportunities.

  
  


Lucas had taken Sami home right after the incident with the PDA. It was getting late anyways and Lucas could tell the party was beginning to wear her down. Rex and Mimi promised to come home about half and hour later, picking Will up from his Grandpa Shawn's on the way home. As soon as they got back to the loft, Lucas instructed Sami to take a bath.

Sami climbed the stairs, heading towards the bathroom that she and Lucas shared. It connected to Belle's room and was also decorated in soft shades of pink. Still fully dressed, Sami went into the bathroom and bent down over the bathtub. She would get undressed after she started the bathwater. Turning on both the hot and cold knobs, Sami placed her hand underneath the tap to test the temperature of the water.

She felt the cool, sticky liquid before her eyes registered what was flowing out of the nozzle. It took her a few seconds more to realize that the dark red liquid was blood. As the liquid continued to spout out of the tap, covering her hand, the metallic, sickening smell of blood floated up to her nose. Jerking her hand away from the tap, she tried helplessly to calm herself down.

"Lucas!" she screamed as loudly as she could, "Lucas!" she only had to scream his name four times before he was inside the bathroom with her. He took in the sight of her red-smeared hand, dripping red drops onto the tiled floor and the sight of the blood gushing out of the bathtub nozzle. Lucas went over and turned both knobs full-blast until the red liquid had finally dissolved, leaving nothing but clear, uncontaminated water. Once he had finished this, he turned to Sami. She stood frozen, staring in shock at her bloodstained hand. Lucas took her arm and gently led her to the sink. He placed her hand under cold water and washed the blood off her hand.

She finally recovered enough to speak, "What does this mean, Lucas? The killer had to have gotten in here tonight. Or maybe it's a sign. Maybe it's telling me that I'm going to die next." Her eyes were wide with fear but she didn't cry. It was like she had cried so much that she couldn't cry anymore. He stroked the side of her face.

"You're not going to die." he told her, "I know this has been a hard day for you, Sami. You need to take a hot bath, to relax. Then you need to get a good sleep."

Sami nodded and followed him into the bedroom, "Lucas, while I take a bath, can you make sure all the windows are locked?" she asked in a small voice. Lucas nodded understandingly and watched her retreat back into the bathroom. He felt rage tighten his stomach and he wished that he knew who was doing this to Sami. If he ever found out, he was not going to let the people responsible get away from him in one piece.


	15. Chapter Fifteen NC17

Chapter Fifteen

  
  


Almost two hours later, Sami began descending the stairs just outside Belle's bedroom. Most of the lights were turned off but since Belle's old bed was still empty, she knew Lucas had to be downstairs. He was sprawled out on the couch in the living room and Sami paused to stare at him for a moment. It only took around a second for him to sense her presence and he sat up on the couch, rubbing at his eyes tiredly. He snapped on the table lamp next to him and his mouth dropped open when he saw Sami.

She had blow-dried her hair and wrapped it up in a twist on top of her head. She was wearing a short, royal purple satin robe, he had never seen her wear something so arousing. Was she purposely trying to torture him or something?

"Nice...... robe." he managed, his voice coming out tight and strangled. Sami pulled the loosely tied robe around her tighter, realizing that coming downstairs was a mistake. She should have just changed into her pajamas and went right to bed. Remembering that she wasn't wearing a stitch of clothing underneath the robe made her even more wary of Lucas. The way he was looking at her was both mortifying and flattering at the same time. That unconcealed hunger was there for a few more seconds, until he broke her gaze and looked at the floor.

"Thanks." she said and when his eyes met hers again, she stared at him defiantly, "It was a present from Belle."

"Oh." Lucas got off the couch and walked past her into the kitchen. Sami followed him.

"Mimi went to bed a while ago and I tucked Will in already. He's asleep." Lucas informed her. Sami nodded and pulled herself onto the counter. Sitting on the counter, she felt the cold surface touch the bare part of her legs and shivered. Lucas noticed and came over to her.

"That thing with the bathtub really freaked you out, didn't it?" he asked. Sami nodded wordlessly, knowing that Lucas had more to say.

"I called Bo, to tell him about it. He still thinks we should stay here. It's like he's just waiting for-" Lucas stopped himself from finishing the sentence, "This is so unfair to you."

Sami tried to sound brave when she spoke, but her voice shook dangerously, "It doesn't matter. I have this feeling that, no matter where I go, the killers are going to be able to find me. I'm in danger no matter where I'm living."

"Don't say that." Lucas shook his head, "I know that you're going to get through this. But I wish the Salem PD would help make this easier on you. God, if I had my way about it, I'd take you out of Salem and I'd-"

"You'd what?" Sami cringed at the sound of her voice. It was so suggestive and so full of desire that he would have to be deaf not to notice. Lucas looked at her, his eyes smoldering with unleashed passion.

"I think you know what I'd do." he said simply, then pulled her into his arms. Capturing her lips with his, he brought his hands up to caress the sides of her face. Moving them even higher, he pulled the clips out of her hair, letting her long blonde hair cascade around her shoulders. He continued kissing her until finally he pulled away, his breaths low and ragged.

"Sami, just help me out a little. One us needs to be reasonable about this." Lucas begged her. One part of him wanted her to push him away and the other part wanted so badly for her to pull him back towards her.

"I think it's your turn to be reasonable." was all she said, nipping playfully at his lips. Heat surged through his body as he began to kiss her more fiercely, more hungrily. If that was the way she wanted to do this, then he knew he could win. She wasn't going to do to him what she had done earlier that day outside the loft.

He unknotted the belt of her robe and pushed aside the satin material, revealing every inch of her taut, milk-white flesh. Sami watched as he did that thing with his lips he often did when he looked at her. She loved it when he did that. Every time he did it, it made her want him even more. Wanting him to be as naked and vulnerable as she felt, she tugged at his dark blue dress shirt, pulling the bottom from the waistband of his pants. Her fingers worked quickly and smoothly, unbuttoning each button as he continued to press his lips against hers.

She drew in a sharp breath when she felt him trace the curve of her breast with his fingers. He continued stroking her skin, loving the way it felt beneath his hands, still baby soft from the long, hot bath. When his thumbs began circling her hard nipples, she felt them tighten even more. Drawing his mouth away from her lips, he moved down her neck, dropping hot wet kisses that left a path of pure liquid fire.

He reached her large, perfectly rounded breasts with his mouth, his tongue making hot, wet circles around her left nipple. He gave her right nipple the same treatment and his hands finally moved away from the soft flesh of her stomach, moving down to the aching place between her thighs. He had laid her flat out on the counter by this time, with her robe making a dark purple pool of satin behind her.

Sami felt his finger slip inside her and gasped, arching her back with pleasure. Lucas continued probing deeper inside her, eventually moving a second finger inside. She felt herself reaching a higher and higher point but before she could climax, Lucas withdrew both fingers.

She whimpered in protest and Lucas put one finger to his lips to silence her, "I'm sorry, Sami. But I had to stop."

"Why?" she asked, her whole body quivering with desire. She hated her body at that moment, for revealing her true longings for him.

"Because once we finished, you would have told me that I did all of it against your free will. I don't want that. It's your call, Sami. I'm letting you have your free will."

"What are you saying?" Sami asked, not believing he was actually doing this to her.

"You have to look me in the eye right now and tell me if this is what you want. If you say no, I'll stop." he smirked at her and she felt herself seething with fury. The bastard. He was actually going to make her say it.

"You can't stop something you already started." she protested, "That isn't fair."

"Is that a yes?" he asked hopefully.

"Yes." she whispered, so low that even she could barely make it out.

"I didn't quite catch that." he told her, the evil grin widening. He was enjoying this. He was totally enjoying seeing her fall apart, asking him for something she said she would never ask him for. Sami gritted her teeth.

"Yes, I want you." she said finally, her voice low and husky, "Please?" she added for good measure.

He tried not to let his relief at her answer show and he simply nodded as she pulled him into another long, passionate kiss. His finger slipped back inside her moist entrance and she dug her fingers into his muscular shoulders. Again, he slipped his second finger inside and dug deep into her sheath. The other hand was massaging the flushed skin of her chest, his kisses not slowing, each one more fiery than the last. The tension inside her finally snapped.

She let out a cry when she came. Lucas pressed his mouth to hers a second too late, in a now-useful attempt to stifle the noise. Lucas brushed blonde hair out of her eyes and let her breathing slow before letting his mouth linger on hers once more, in a gentler kiss this time. She began undoing his belt and swiftly whipped it off, letting it fall onto the floor. She went to work on his pants next, unbuttoning and unzipping them hurriedly. Pulling them down to his knees she was about to pull down his boxers as well.

"Sami, I thought I heard you down here and I was worried-" Mimi came into the kitchen and saw Lucas and Sami pressed up against the counter together. Lucas watched as her face turned an alarming shade of red.

"Oops." she said in a small voice but seemed frozen to her spot on the floor. Sami yanked the robe back over herself, feeling her own face grow hot with embarrassment. There was no way she and Lucas were going to get out of this one. It must have been quite a sight- her naked on the counter and Lucas with his shirt unbuttoned and his pants down. There were absolutely no excuses even two incredibly experienced liars could come up with to get around Mimi knowing the truth.

Sami tied the sash as Mimi continued to stare at them. Lucas pulled his pants back up and struggled to re-zip the pants. It was really difficult with his still erect member begging to escape from the constricting material of his clothes.

Mimi and Sami were both a scarlet colour now and neither made a move to say anything. Lucas cleared his throat.

"I thought you knew this, Mimi, but around here, a movie costs ten bucks. Were you planning on coughing up the money or did you want to get some popcorn first?" he had tried to relieve some of the tension but his words made Mimi blush even harder.

"I think I'll go back upstairs now." Mimi immediately turned around and raced back up the stairs, her hair flying behind her.

Lucas turned back to Sami and tried to smile, "That has got to be on the top ten list of reasons not to have a roommate."

Sami giggled, "I guess we should just be grateful it was her and not Will."

Lucas nodded in agreement and Sami hopped off the counter. Her face now only tinged pink, she tried to form a smile that ended up looking more like a grimace.

"I'm going to go upstairs and, um, go to sleep." she told him. He watched her walk back up the stairs. He was torn between wanting to strangle Mimi and wanting to thank her. He shouldn't have lost it like that, not twice in the same day. But with Sami, he couldn't help himself. Still, now he had to go fix his little problem in the bathroom. With his hand, which was a horrible replacement for other things that could have been wrapped around him if Mimi hadn't decided to come in when she did. Lucas brushed the thought away. From now on, he was going to stay in control. Tonight had proved that he shouldn't be involved with Sami in that way. He would be her friend and he would protect her. He wouldn't be anything else, at least for the time being.


	16. Chapter Sixteen

Chapter Sixteen

  
  


It had been three days since Mimi had walked in on Lucas and Sami in the kitchen. Rex, Shawn and Phillip were over and they were all getting ready to have lunch.

"So, where are Sami and Lucas?" Phillip asked casually, curious to know how things were going for his brother and Sami.

"Lucas said he was driving Sami over to Marlena's office at the hospital. Sami wants to get Marlena to try hypnosis on her." Mimi told them. Things had been slightly strained between her, Lucas and Sami for the past few days and the level of discomfort was so obvious that even Will noticed. Mimi still couldn't believe that, of all people, she had been the one to walk in on Lucas and Sami.

"You haven't let us know how things are going for them." Rex commented, "Have they gotten any closer yet?"

Mimi stifled a giggle at his words. Closer was definitely one way of putting it, "You could say that. But I don't want to talk about it."

"Mimi!" Shawn looked up at his friend pleadingly, "You can't keep it from us. We were in this together."

"I know it's just so-" Mimi paused and covered her eyes with her hands dramatically, "I'm permanently scarred now. My poor, virginous eyes!"

Shawn looked from Rex to Mimi, "Virginous?" he asked so incredulously that Mimi burst out laughing.

Rex looked uncertain now, "I don't think I want to hear this anymore. I mean, we are talking about my brother and sister here."

"It was bad." Mimi told him, "I'll give you where it happened and when it happened. I'll leave the how and what to your imagination."

"We're listening." Phillip looked up from the sandwich he was making.

"It happened at around eleven at night, three nights ago." Mimi began, then smirked at Shawn, "And it happened on the very counter you are making that sandwich on."

"Sick!" Shawn said, his voice filled with disgust, "There is no way in HELL that I am eating this sandwich now." Rex and Phillip snickered as Shawn tossed the sandwich in the trash.

  
  


"So, can you start the hypnosis right away?" Sami asked impatiently, "Lucas is waiting outside and I don't want him to have to wait any longer than he has to."

Marlena tilted her head and looked at Sami carefully, "You and Lucas have been spending a lot of time together, haven't you?"

"Yes." Sami didn't want to go into her current relationship with Lucas. She didn't want to tell her mother how hard it was to sleep right next to him after their night of passion on the counter in the kitchen, "But that isn't important."

"I'm afraid it's more important than you're leading yourself to believe." Marlena told her, "I am a professional, Samantha. I like to think that I know what I'm doing. I can see what is going on here and it's something hypnosis is not going to cure."

Sami felt confusion shoot through her body, "Why not?

"I don't believe this is a state of traumatic amnesia." Marlena glared at her daughter, "What you are suffering from is something called hysterical amnesia. And if not that, then you don't have amnesia at all."

"What do you mean, hysterical amnesia?" Sami inquired, not yet registering the fact that her own mother had just accused her of faking amnesia.

"Hysterical amnesia is more of a psychological problem than a physical one. I think that Lucas plays a big part in that." Marlena told her.

"I don't understand. And I can't believe you would accuse me of faking something like this. Keeping the killer's identity from the police could cost me my life." Sami said angrily.

"Not with Lucas always around, doing his best to protect you." Marlena shook her head, "The poor thing. I know how easy it is to get too emotionally attached to someone when you don't want to. He might be having an even harder time with this than you are."

Sami felt her face grow red with anger, "You're saying he really doesn't care about me and he's just been around me so much that he got attached."

"Yes, that's what I'm saying." Marlena didn't bother trying to soften the words, instead she said them coldly and matter-of-factly, "Sami, you're my daughter. You've always wanted a male to play to the role of the white knight in your life. Austin and Brandon are two very good examples. Now that Lucas is protecting you, for Will's sake, he is taking over the role of the white knight in your life. It's very clear to me that this is what is going on in your mind."

"Well, it's very clear to me that you don't know what you're talking about." Sami seethed, standing up angrily, "I do not need a white knight. And even if I did, Lucas is the last person I'd want to be my knight. I can barely stand to be in the same room with him!"

"Really? Then all the time you've been spending with him lately must really be killing you." Marlena responded. Sami's face was flaming and she glowered at her mother.

"If you don't want to help me uncover the killer's identity, then I'll just find a way to do it myself." she shouted, storming out of the room. Lucas came over to her and noticed the look on her face.

"What did she say to you?" he asked in concern but Sami brushed the words away.

"It doesn't matter. Look, I'm going to walk back to the loft. I need some time alone." she informed him.

Lucas looked worried, "Are you sure?"

"Yes!" she threw up her hands in exasperation, "I don't need anyone to protect me. It's the middle of the day, for Christ's sake. I am asking you to leave, okay?" without another word, she stalked down the hall. Lucas' shoulders slumped in defeat and he then began wondering what Marlena could have said to get Sami so worked up. He walked purposely over to Marlena's office and burst inside without knocking.

"What the hell did you say to her?" he demanded as Marlena stared up at him in surprise.

  
  


Nicole let Cassie in through the front door and told her that Brady was in the living room with Victor. Cassie headed towards the living room but stopped outside the door. She didn't feel very uncomfortable around Victor, not with the dirty looks he always gave her. She tried to work up her courage to enter the room but then she heard Victor say her name. She paused outside the door and listened to what he was saying.

"She's a total tramp. She is not your type at all. How can you forget Chloe when so little time has passed? Remember how much you loved her? Think about the love you had with her and put a stop to this cheap infatuation you have for Cassie." Victor was saying. Cassie scowled, hating Victor more than she ever had at that moment. She hoped that Brady would defend her. That would show Victor.

Brady was silent for a moment, then finally spoke, "Maybe you're right, granddad. I'll think about it." Cassie couldn't believe she had heard him back down without even trying to stand up for her. He obviously didn't care about her at all. Completely humiliated, she turned and began rushing towards the front door. But she tripped over an end table and the vase sitting on the top of it fell to the floor. The vase shattered into tiny pieces and Cassie looked at the broken pieces in horror.

Seconds later, Brady emerged. He looked happy to see her.

"Cassie!" Brady smiled at her but she turned and fled from him without replying. Brady had caught a quick look at her expression and knew right away that she had heard his conversation with Victor.

"Cassie, don't leave!" he called after her. The door slammed in response. He rushed out the door after her, slamming the door behind him.

Nicole had listened to the entire exchange and smiled to herself, "Sounds like trouble in paradise." she murmured to herself, "Not that I care. I'm too busy with my own life."

Swishing the ice around in the glass, she thought about Phillip, "I am going to make you mine, Phillip. The next time I see you, I'll get my kiss. And maybe more." her smile widened as she took a sip of her drink. She knew that she wanted Phillip. Now she just had to create a plan.


	17. Chapter Seventeen

Chapter Seventeen

  
  


Brady caught sight of Cassie's reddish-brown hair as she sprinted across the field at the large park in Salem. Brady stopped his car and yanked his keys out of the ignition. He jumped out of the car and ran after her. She had a good head start but Brady eventually managed to catch up with her. Once he managed to grab one of her arms, she tried frantically to get away from him. She was pretty forceful and managed to drag him a few feet more, behind some hedges.

"Leave me alone!" she screamed at him, bringing her foot up to kick him hard in the shin. Brady winced in pain but immediately continued chasing after Cassie, who had ran behind some more tall hedges. He finally caught up to her and had to tackle her to keep her from running away from him.

Brady tried not to put too much weight on Cassie as he lay on top of her. She was crying and he didn't want to move, afraid that she would run away again if he got off her. Brady took in the sight of her face, still beautiful but red and soaked with tears. Guilt sliced through him when he realized he had done this to her. But what could he expect? He had agreed with all the horrible things Victor had said about her. That wasn't fair especially when he knew that they weren't true.

Victor had called what he had with Cassie a cheap infatuation. But it wasn't just that. Yeah, she was gorgeous and he loved her body but that wasn't all there was to it. There was more to their relationship that Victor knew, more than Victor would ever understand.

Cassie and Brady lay there like that for what seemed like an eternity, "Sh, I'm sorry, Cass. Please don't cry." he begged her and he didn't stop trying to comfort her with his words until her cries subsided. Once she had stopped crying, she looked at him with moist eyes.

"Brady, do you think I'm a slut?" she asked him and he rolled off her on that note. It was hard not to think about sex when you were lying on top of a girl. He stared down at the damp grass, feeling the moisture soak through his shirt and not really caring.

"Of course not," he looked up at her guiltily, "I am so sorry you had to hear what Victor said about you. I should have argued, I should have stood up to him. But if there's one thing I hate, it's knocking heads with my grandfather. He is wrong though. He doesn't even know you. I know you and I know that you are definitely not a slut."

"I always really wanted a boyfriend." Cassie confessed, "I guess I just got out of hand sometimes. But I saw Belle with Shawn and I saw Rex with Mimi and it made me feel lonely. I thought that if I could get a guy to sleep with me, then all my problems would be solved."

"A real boyfriend would want more from you than just sex." Brady told her.

Cassie sighed, "I wouldn't know. God, what am I saying? I'm just sitting here feeling sorry for myself. Why do you put up with me, Brady?"

"Because you are a great person." Brady answered without hesitation, "You're sweet and funny. I love how you're so forward about things. Besides, we have a lot in common."

Cassie smiled softly but said nothing. Brady cleared his throat and gazed at her with enough intensity to cause Cassie to move her eyes away from his.

"Are you still looking?" he asked finally.

"For what?" Cassie asked, hoping that he was getting at what she had the feeling he was getting at.

"A boyfriend." he responded, "Cassie, my grandfather was completely wrong about how I feel for you. I did love Chloe but I stopped loving her a long time ago. Now, I really care about you."

"You seriously want me to be your girlfriend?" she questioned him uncertainly. Brady propped himself up on one elbow and leaned in for a kiss. The minute his lips touched hers, all the questions and uncertainties about his feelings for her vanished. Cassie knew where she stood with him and entwined her hands around his neck, deepening the first kiss that had ever really mattered to her.

  
  


Sami had cooled down a little bit by the time she got back to the building the loft was in. But she was still both hurt and angry at her mother's words. She was also angry at Lucas. He had to go and seduce her, make her want him, practically force her into telling him that she wanted him and all along, he had never really cared about her at all.

"I know how easy it is to get too emotionally attached to someone when you don't want to." Sami mimicked her mother's condescending tone and kicked the wall of the elevator in agitation. It finally reached the top floor and she stepped out of the elevator. She had only gone two steps when she noticed the body of a young boy lying in front of the door to the loft.

  
  


Lucas had driven into the parking space just in time to see Sami go inside the building. He decide to take his time going up to see her, not knowing how to approach her.

He had finally managed to tear the truth about what Marlena had said to Sami out of Marlena. He had spent a good amount of time ripping into her. If he hadn't spent so long calling her every name he could think of that fit her, he would have made it back to the loft before Sami.

Lucas climbed out of the car and made his way up to the loft. He knew that Mimi and Rex were out on a date and that Shawn and Phillip were working together to find some clues about the killer. They had all planned to have a quick lunch at the loft and then leave. He got off the elevator and noticed Sami hunched over the lifeless form of a smaller person. His chest felt like it was caving in when he noticed the sneakered feet and familiar head of hair of the unmoving form on the ground.

He went over to Sami and knelt down beside her, "Is Will.........?" he couldn't bring herself to finish the sentence. Sami shook her head, tears continuing to stream down her face and Lucas began to feel sick to his stomach. He had been so busy protecting Sami, he never considered Will being a suspect.

"It's not Will." Sami shook her head, "But they wanted me to believe it was. They must have known the exact time when Mimi and everyone was leaving. They snuck this..... body in here without anyone seeing it."

"I can't believe they'd do this." Lucas muttered, secretly more relieved that Sami was okay and that Will was still safe at school more than anything else. Horror at the sight of the dead boy in front of him was close behind the relief. He had never seen the boy before. He looked a little like Will but once you got up close, it was clear that he wasn't Will. Lucas couldn't believe the killers had gone through such extremes to torture Sami. What if this was their way of letting Sami know that they were planning on going after Will next?

Lucas stood up and gently pulled Sami off the floor along with him. He wanted to move fast, "Go upstairs and pack you and Will a suitcase. I'll pack my own stuff and call the police." Sami was still too shocked to argue with him.

Ten minutes later, they drove to Will's school and got him out of class early. Will adjusted his backpack straps and looked into the troubled expressions on his parents' faces.

"Something happened, didn't it?" Will demanded and Lucas and Sami exchanged uneasy glances in the front seat.

"Don't worry about it, buddy." Lucas answered finally, "We're going to take care of everything. We're going to be fine." 

Lucas reached Roman's old house and he, Sami and Will walked up to the front door. Kate answered the door after Lucas rang the doorbell three times in the short period of ten seconds.

"Where's the fire?" she asked, her eyes dark with annoyance. The annoyed look on her face seemed to deepen when she saw Sami.

"Mom, I need you to let Will stay here for a while." Lucas informed her, handing her the bag of Will's things Sami had quickly packed, "Here's his things."

"What?" Will asked in confusion.

Sami bent over and hugged her son tightly, "It's okay, sweetie. Once the killers are caught, we're going to move back into our own apartments and everything is going to go back to normal."

Lucas and Sami left Will and Kate standing at the front door, staring after them, "Where are you going with her, Lucas?" Kate yelled, not bothering to keep the anger out of her voice. Lucas ignored her and got into his car, driving away from her house.

Sami let him drive without saying a word for about half an hour. She noticed that he had made it out of Salem already and was driving along the outskirts of the town.

"What are you doing?" she asked him.

Lucas kept both eyes in front of him, "I'm sorry you had to hear your mother say that today. She was wrong though. I did not get emotionally attached to you because I'm trying to keep you from getting killed for Will's sake. It's something completely different." he shut his mouth, not allowing himself to say anything that would give his feelings away. Sami was going through enough already. She didn't need to know his feelings and have them complicate everything for her even more.

Sami seemed to be able to tell he didn't want to go into details with her at that time. After a few more minutes of silence, she spoke again, "You still haven't told me what you're doing." she reminded him.

"Something I should have right from the start." Lucas replied, his jaw clenched with determination. Sami left it at that and stared out the window as Lucas continued to drive further and further away from Salem.


	18. Chapter Eighteen NC17

Chapter Eighteen

  
  


Bo hung up his cell phone and slammed his fist into the wall angrily. He couldn't believe this was happening.

"This is just terrific." he said sarcastically, "We still haven't been able to identify the body of the boy and your cousin has run off with our only witness to the murders!"

"Bo, calm down." Hope soothed him, "We just need to look a little harder. Phillip has no idea where they might be but Rex or Mimi might know something. We just haven't been able to track them down either. Phillip said Rex and Mimi were going out tonight. Kate, Marlena and John don't know where they are either. Kate seemed pretty upset though. I don't think she likes the idea of Lucas being alone with Sami."

"I don't particularly care for Lucas at this point in time." Bo grumbled, "What Sami saw that night is the only lead in these murders. We cannot have Lucas around, screwing up our investigation."

"I'm sure that's not what he's trying to do." Hope said weakly, wishing she had a stronger argument. But the truth was, she was a little upset about Lucas running off with Sami as well. He was obviously trying to keep her safe but running away with her wasn't going to help anything. She hoped that she and Bo would be able to find Lucas and Sami soon, before things got even more out of hand.

  
  


Lucas sat on the couch in the hotel suite, rolling the black pistol over in his hands. He had kept it in the back of his glove compartment for the longest time and it had finally made itself useful. Lucas would resort to using it if that was what it took to keep Sami safe. Sami was in the bathroom, taking a bath. Lucas had kept on driving until late into the night. Sami had finally convinced him to stop at a hotel. They had already eaten at a fast food restaurant so they didn't need anything else to eat.

Lucas heard the door to the bathroom open and Sami stepped outside. Before she could see the gun, he jammed it underneath the couch cushion. He licked his lips when he noticed what she was wearing.

"Another gift from Belle?" he guessed, continuing to eye the clingy peach nightgown which clung to every curve seductively.

"How did you ever guess?" she asked, smiling shyly at him. Lucas smiled back. Belle wasn't even alive anymore and she was still going to be the death of him. He wondered what other sexy lingerie she had gotten her sister. But if he tried asking, he knew Sami would give him hell so he kept his mouth shut.

Sami came over and sat on the couch next to him. It was even worse than the night on the counter. Lucas was wearing nothing but a pair of black boxers and all Sami was wearing was that nightgown thing. Now she was sitting right next to him, her leg touching his, with one of her hands sitting intimately on his knee. Lucas felt tingles flowing up his leg at her touch. He cursed himself, wishing it wasn't so easy to get turned on by her.

"I just wanted you to know that I appreciate what you did for me." she told him, "For getting me out of Salem. I don't think I would have lasted much longer."

"You deserve more than to sit around in Salem and have the killers attack you from all sides." Lucas said to her "And I'm not taking you back there until they catch these killers. We're going to keep driving farther and farther away from Salem."

"I didn't bring that many clothes though." Sami looked at him in horror, "I can't keep wearing the same things over and over again."

"I'll buy you new clothes." Lucas responded, "Hopefully, they'll catch this killer soon though."

"What if they never catch the killer?" Sami asked him.

"Then it looks like you're stuck with me." Lucas grinned at her, "If they don't catch them soon, we'll go back, get Will and take off."

The idea almost appealed to her but she tried not to let it show. Lucas stopped smiling and moved his head towards her. She closed her eyes and felt the smooth, warm sensation of his lips meeting hers. She kissed him back, every cell in her body wanting to be with him. He nibbled her bottom lip as she pushed her tongue into his mouth. Lucas moved the straps of the nightgown off her shoulders and stroked the bare skin where her neck met her shoulder. She finally pulled away from him and her eyes met his pleadingly.

"Make love to me, Lucas." she begged him. He didn't need any prompting. After what had happened earlier that day, he couldn't pass up a chance like this. He had absolutely no self-control when it came to Sami. He picked her up and carried her over to the bed, where he proceeded to helping her out of the nightgown. Her blonde hair spilled over the white pillows as Lucas brought his head down to pull her into another hungry kiss. As he kissed her, his hands kneaded her breasts gently, his fingertips brushing against the hard, rose-coloured nipples.

Sami felt herself smiling as she looked up into Lucas' eyes, glad they were here alone, where no one could come in and interrupt them. For the night at least, he was hers. He nipped at her smiling lips and she could feel the hard flesh covered by the boxers. Suddenly unable to help herself, her hands slid underneath the elastic to his boxers and she pulled them off him. Her eyes travelled down his muscular stomach to his hard penis and she felt her heart speed up even more at the sight of it. It had been so long that she had forgotten how big he really was.

She felt his eyes boring into hers and she realized that she had been staring, "I'm sorry." she said, unwillingly pulling her gaze away.

"Don't be." Lucas smirked at her, "Having you stare at it like it's the most magnificent thing you've ever seen does wonders for my ego."

"You don't need any help in that department." Sami shot back teasingly. She remembered Brandon Walker and how small he had been in comparison to Lucas. Pushing thoughts of Brandon away completely, one hand moved down to slide along his shaft. He groaned loudly as her fingers stroked him from base to tip. Lucas' hot naked body pressed against her and she could feel his erection digging her hip.

Lucas stopped kissing her long enough to look down at her questioningly, "Are you sure this is what you want?" his knuckle brushed against the curve of her breasts and she whimpered in protest.

"You know I do." she said, "Please, Lucas." Lucas nodded and Sami helped guide his pulsing member to her entrance. His thrusts were gentle and hesitating for a while. Sami was writhing underneath him passionately, bucking her hips and arching her back to get more of him inside her. He couldn't contain all the passion built up inside him and began thrusting into her harder and faster. She moaned loudly as they moved together as one. Lucas began sucking on her neck as he continued to push into her. Her fingernails dug into his back and they were both breathing heavily.

They both climaxed and fell back against the sheets. They just lay there for what seemed like forever until Sami finally got up and found her nightgown. She pulled it back on as Lucas put his boxers back on. After they had both gotten dressed again, Sami went over to Lucas and sat down on the bed next to him. She wasn't sure how to act around him now. Lucas shifted uncomfortably, not knowing what to say either. He still refused to tell her how he felt, not until the killers were caught and life was back to normal.

"It's late." Sami said finally, deciding that he wasn't going to say anything about what had just happened, "I think we should go to sleep." Lucas nodded in agreement and Sami felt humiliation and anger wash over her. She wasn't going to reduce herself to being anyone's sex toy, not even his. Who did he think she was, Nicole? She wanted to argue with him and make him tell her he cared about her. But she was so drained of all her energy that the idea of getting into a fight with him seemed too strenuous for that night. She wasn't going to let him get away with it for much longer though.

Lucas watched her make her way into the bathroom and immediately went back over to the couch. He pulled the gun out of it's spot and carried it over to the bed. He pushed it under his pillow and then crawled underneath the covers. Sami came out of the bathroom a few minutes later and switched off all the lights. She crawled into the bed from the other side.

Sami slid across the bed closer to Lucas and he pulled her body on top of his. She could feel the rise and fall of his chest underneath her and it was so comforting. When he held her like this, she could almost believe that he loved her, even if he never said it. One of his hands rested on her rib-cage and the other rested on her stomach. They fell asleep in that position and Sami couldn't remember the last time she had felt more safe than she did that night.


	19. Chapter Nineteen

Chapter Nineteen

  
  


Lucas opened his eyes slowly, wishing he could go back to sleep. He didn't want to disentangle himself from the velvety warmth that was Sami. He softly trailed his fingers down her right arm and he heard her let out a contented murmur. The peach-coloured fabric shifted under his hands as she rolled over to look at him.

"Hey." he said quietly, giving her a small smile. Sami smiled back. She didn't know how he managed to make that one word sound so sexy but he did it, even though his voice was still thick and groggy from just waking up. She leaned down a gave him a short kiss on the lips.

"What's the plan for today, General?" she asked him.

"We're going to order breakfast. After breakfast, we're going to get dressed, pack up our stuff and start driving again." he said decisively and Sami reluctantly pulled herself off the bed.

As soon as breakfast was finished, Sami went into the bathroom to change. She slipped into a pale blue dress and pulled her hair back from her face into a bun. She admired her reflection until she spotted something that made her smile turn to a scowl. Taking her nightgown out of the bathroom with her, she went over to Lucas, who was already dressed.

"Lucas, look what you did to me!" she said in mock outrage. He looked at her in confusion and she pointed to her neck. His confused look turned to a grin as he spotted the red mark.

"You're so vain, Sami." he chided her, "It doesn't look that bad."

"Oh, it doesn't?" Sami's eyes glittered mischievously as she took another step, filling in the space between them, "We'll see who's vain. It's my turn to give you a hickey."

Before Lucas could react, Sami wrapped her arms around his shoulders and moved her lips onto his neck. He shut his eyes as she began nibbling and sucking on the skin of his neck. After a few seconds, he growled in protest and moved away from her. He held her head in his hands and placed his lips onto hers. Sami's lips were still slightly swollen from his kisses the night before and his mouth pressing hungrily against hers wasn't helping anything. But she kissed him back just as hungrily despite the dull pain of her mouth, her tongue running along his teeth. After kissing like that for a few more minutes, Lucas broke the contact.

"We have to get going." he told her, grabbing her hand and clutching it in his. They both grabbed their bags and made their way over to the elevator.

As soon as they stepped off the elevator and entered the lobby of the hotel, Lucas felt his heart sink. He saw Bo, Hope, Rex and Mimi standing in the lobby, their backs turned to Lucas and Sami. Sami noticed the four familiar people too and stiffened. Lucas squeezed her hand and tossed his head in the direction of the doors, telling her to try and sneak past them. They made it all the way to the door when Bo spotted Lucas and Sami.

"Hey, there they are!" Bo pointed to the two trying to make their escape and he, Hope, Rex and Mimi ran after them. Lucas was unlocking the driver's side of the car when Bo caught up to him. Bo turned him around and slammed him against the car angrily before Hope was able to catch up to him and pull him off Lucas.

"What the hell do you think you are doing, Lucas?" Bo yelled, trying to move out of his wife's arms. Rex had to jump in and help steady the man, "It stops here and now and I mean it! Do you understand?"

Bo's entire face and neck were bright red with anger and Lucas couldn't remember the last time he had seen the man so angry, "Yes."

"You better!" Bo told him, "I was glad that you were around to protect Sami at first. But you have gone way too far. You have lost any sense of objectiveness you may have had when Sami first got chased by the killers!"

"You don't seem very objective right now either!" Sami stepped in.

"Samantha Brady, do not get smart with me. Do you have any idea how worried we were? Thank God we found you before Lucas took you even further away from Salem."

"How did you find us?" Lucas asked curiously. He had thought he had made sure to cover their tracks so that no one could follow them.

"We wouldn't have found you if wasn't for Rex. It's a good thing he put a bug in Samantha's cell phone." Sami turned to glare at Rex.

"You had no right to do that!" Sami fumed.

"It was for a good cause. I figured it would keep you safe. Mimi, Shawn and Phillip all begged me to do it." Rex told her and Sami's glare now alternated between Rex and Mimi.

"I ought to throw you in jail for doing this." Bo shook his head in disgust, "You ran off with my witness, the only one who can help us figure out who is behind all these killings. I'll give you another chance though, I won't throw you in jail. But whatever is going on between you and my niece stops here and now!"

Sami's head jerked over to look at Bo in shock, unable to believe he had said something like that. Bo ignored the looks Sami was giving him and continued, "Sami, you will have to move in with another relative or another friend. Lucas, you will also move out of the loft and you will take your son with you. I can't have Rex, Mimi and Shawn put in danger because of you."

Sami finally found her voice, "There is nothing going on between Lucas and I. He took me away from Salem because he was worried. All he was doing was keeping me safe."

"Right," Bo's hard gaze didn't leave Sami's face, "Then where did you get that hickey on your neck?"

"Bo!" Hope admonished as Sami's hand flew up to the red mark on her neck.

"It's not a hickey." she said weakly. Rex and Mimi stood behind Bo and Hope, coughing loudly to cover up their laughter. Sami shot them dirty looks. But they knew the truth and so did Bo and Hope. All four of them knew what was going on between her and Lucas.

"If you say so." Bo gave a tired sigh and ran his hands through his dark hair, "Lucas, you will have no contact with Sami until we catch the killers. I don't want you messing this up any more than you already have."

Lucas opened his mouth to argue but he saw Bo's fists clench and decided against it, "Yes sir." Bo would never be able to tell he was lying. But he was lying. There was no way he was going to break all contact with Sami. He had made a promise to protect her and was going to keep it, no matter what Bo Brady and the Salem PD said. He got into his car as Bo led Sami over to his van. Rex, Mimi, Bo, Hope and Sami piled into Bo's mini-van and all of them started the drive back to Salem, with Lucas following close behind the van in his car.


	20. Chapter Twenty

Chapter Twenty

  
  


Cassie opened the door to the two-story house that she and Phillip shared and Nicole stepped inside. Cassie had moved out of the Dimera Mansion not long after it was revealed that Roman Brady was she and Rex's real father. If Cassie had to pick one person, besides Rex, she would have to say that Phillip was her best friend in Salem.

"Hey, Cassie." Nicole had heard that Brady and Cassie were dating but most feelings of jealousy towards Cassie were gone now, "Is Phillip home?"

Cassie nodded, "He's in the bathroom, taking a shower." for a second, Cassie thought she saw a smile flash across Nicole's face. She decided that it was her imagination when the look on Nicole's face was gone almost as quickly as it had appeared. Nicole simply nodded and began heading towards his bedroom. Phillip had his own bathroom that connected to the master bedroom he slept in.

"What are you doing?" Cassie asked. Nicole didn't look behind her.

"I'll just wait for Phillip to get out of the shower in his room. He won't mind." Nicole said as she hurried up the stairs, leaving Cassie staring after her. Nicole pushed the door to Phillip's room open and sat down on the edge of his bed, listening to the sound of water running. After a few minutes of waiting, the water came to a stop. Phillip emerged from the bathroom, a dark green towel wrapped around his waist. He saw her sitting in his bedroom and his mouth dropped open in shock.

"Nicole, how did you get in here?" he questioned her and she paused before answering, admiring his broad shoulders and muscular chest.

"Cassie let me in." she responded.

"Oh." he shifted uncomfortably as she continued staring at his barely covered body longingly. She patted the spot next to her on the bed and he went and sat down.

"Did you figure something out? Do you think you know who the killer is?" he inquired and she shook her head.

"But I figured something else out." she told him and waited for him to reply.

"What?" he asked her, his eyes mirroring the same desire that was in her eyes. Nicole smiled and leaned over, kissing him on the lips.

"This." was all she said before moving her lips onto his into a deeper kiss. Phillip cupped the side of her face in his hand. He didn't care anymore that she was his father's wife. He wasn't seeing that anymore. All he was seeing was Nicole Walker, the woman he had wanted to be with for a long time now. They continued kissing until Nicole finally undid the knot of his towel. He slid her skirt and panties down to her ankles, giving them both what they wanted more than anything else.

  
  


Sami finished packing her suitcases and turned to Lucas. They had packed in almost complete silence, not wanting to acknowledge the separation. The silence was beginning to feel suffocating and Sami felt like she had to say something.

"You and Will are going to be staying at Kate's then?" Sami asked, not daring to argue about his choice of who to stay with. Sami was moving in with Cassie and Phillip, despite Cassie's protests. The police decided that was best because if the killers knew Sami, it would be a move they didn't expect.

"Yeah." Lucas came over to her and put his hands on her shoulder, "Sami, I know your uncle told us that we couldn't be around each other while the killer is still out there. But I can't do that, I can't stay away from you. I told you that I wouldn't leave unless you asked me to and I meant it. All I want to do is make sure you're safe. You know I'd never do anything to put your life in danger, don't you?"

"Of course I know you wouldn't." Sami whispered, "You've been here for me ever since that awful night when Chloe was murdered. You've never done anything wrong. You've been amazing." In too many ways too count, she added to herself. Lucas stroked her neck with his thumbs, not wanting to leave her side. He couldn't believe Bo was doing this. This was going to be torture for Lucas. He had gotten so used to falling asleep with Sami right next to him, to waking up with Sami in his arms.

"I don't want us to separate. I'm still going to be around whenever I can though." Lucas promised.

"Bo seemed serious about us staying away from each other." Sami looked worried, "He would be pretty angry if he found out you were still hanging around me."

"Well, think about it. You're living with Phillip and Cassie. I have the perfect excuse." Lucas smirked, "I'm sorry but I have to watch out for my little brother. I can't do anything about the fact that you're living in the same house as he is. And because you are the mother of my child, I must at least be civil to you."

"At least." Sami grinned, thinking of other ways he could treat her that she would enjoy so much more. The way he had treated her in the kitchen that night or the way he had acted in the hotel were too great examples, "And don't forget, your little sister, Cassie, lives in the same house as well."

"Right, my little sister." Lucas grimaced, "I feel so weird about calling her that."

"And I know why." Lucas' eyes widened and he hoped that she didn't mean what he thought she meant. There was no way she could have found out about that time with Cassie, he had made sure never to let that slip. How else could she have found out?

"Mimi and I got to talking one day when you were gone." Sami elaborated, "She told me about this time she walked in on Cassie when she was in bed with her half-brother."

"How long have you known?" Lucas asked sheepishly.

"About a week." Sami answered.

"Why didn't you say anything about it? No, let me guess, you were so full of anger and jealousy that you couldn't approach me about it because you knew your emotions would get the better of you?" Lucas guessed.

"Guess again." Sami smiled mockingly at him, "Actually, I didn't say anything because I knew the minute I brought it up, I would start laughing at you. When Mimi told me what happened, I was laughing so hard-" Sami couldn't finish the sentence. She began giggling hysterically and Lucas frowned at her.

"Stop laughing at me." he felt his face heat up with embarrassment, which made Sami laugh even harder. In a matter of seconds, she was doubled over, helplessly trying to catch her breath.

"Don't be like that. If I had been in that situation and you found out, you would be laughing at me too." she said through giggles. Her laughter was contagious and Lucas eventually found himself chuckling as well. Their laughter was cut off by a knock at the door. Mimi came inside, eyeing them sympathetically.

"I just got off the phone with Bo." she told them, "He wants you out of the loft really soon." Mimi seemed to be able to tell that they needed to be alone and left the room without another word. Sami and Lucas both turned serious.

"So, this is it." Sami tried to sound casual and unaffected but what she really wanted to do was burst into tears. This really was it. She would make up in the morning to an empty bed. Lucas' warm arms wouldn't be there that night, enveloping her into a protective, soothing embrace. She hadn't realized how much she now needed and wanted those things. Maybe her mother was right in some ways, she had grown used to Lucas playing the role of her saviour. But that didn't mean she was purposely keeping the identity of the killers away from the police. She'd give anything to be able to remember who did this to her father and sister and have them locked up forever.

Lucas nodded, his own eyes saddened at the prospect of leaving the place he and Sami had spent so many nights together, "You should go downstairs and tell Rex you're ready to leave. I'm sure he wants to get you over to Phillip's pretty soon."

Sami felt the lump in her throat grow larger but she tried to speak anyways, "I'm sorry about what happened at the hotel. Maybe if I hadn't.... thrown myself at you, we wouldn't have to move out of the loft."

"You didn't throw yourself at me." Lucas countered, "And I have no regrets about what happened that night. I just wish Rex hadn't bugged your cell phone. But I seriously don't have any regrets. Do you?" his eyes pleaded with her to say no.

Sami stood in silence, giving Lucas the chance to say more. She wanted him to tell her that he cared about her. Just because he said he had no regrets didn't mean he loved her. It could just mean that he had been having hormonal imbalances and needed a girl to be with or something. When he didn't answer, she felt her hopes deflating once more.

"I can't answer that." she told him, turning to leave, "Good-bye, Lucas."

Lucas didn't say anything in return and suddenly she felt like she had to turn back around. He was still looking at her, his eyes darkened by disappointment and rejection. Sami felt her chest tighten and unable to stop herself, she went back over to him and put her arms around him. He pulled her closer to him and just held her for a few minutes. Her head was resting on his shoulder and he wished she didn't have to leave him, he wished she could just stay there where he could hold her forever and make sure that no one would ever hurt her. But it was inevitable. After a few minutes, she left the room. Lucas tried to push the feeling away but something inside him made him believe that he had just said good-bye to her for the last time.


	21. Chapter Twenty One

Chapter Twenty-One

  
  


Nicole had re-adjusted her dress and was now sitting up on the bed with Phillip, who was also fully dressed.

"That was amazing." Phillip said simply, throwing Nicole an appreciative glance. Nicole had been with a lot of men and had gotten that remark from them a lot but this time it felt different. Like it actually meant something. When other men said it to her, their hidden meaning was usually something along the lines of, 'Yeah, you're good so I guess we can take this to a two-night stand instead of just a one-night stand'. She couldn't help believing that Phillip was different than them. He treated her better than most of the men in her life did, like he wanted more from her than just sex.

"Thanks." she smiled at the comment. Phillip's face suddenly turned serious.

"We can't keep doing this with you being married to my dad." Phillip told her, "And I don't understand why you're still married to him when you don't love him and would be happy to have him out of your life."

"Because I can't until he offers me more money." Nicole replied, "I can't leave Victor without getting a good amount of money out of him."

"Why not?" Phillip asked in confusion, "Why does it matter so much?"

"It's about power." Nicole tried to explain, "If I just leave him without a fight for the money I deserve after living a life of suffering with him, then he has won. I can't let him win. If he wins, it will prove that he had power over me the whole time. Me getting the money I need out of him will prove that I was the one with the power."

"I don't know why this whole needs to be about power and not about you being happy with someone who really cares about you." Phillip responded.

"Everything is about power in the end. You wind up realizing that one day and it hurts like hell." Nicole answered. Power had caused her to lose all the men she ever cared about at all. Eric. Austin. Brady. She had brought a lot of it on herself, she knew that. She had been the one who had married Lucas for his money instead of continuing to be happy with Eric. Because money was power. She had also lied and cheated until she drove Austin and Brady away too.

But it felt different with Phillip. She still kept secrets from him but she had never actually flat out lied to him about anything. She hadn't been that honest with anyone, not even Brady.

"It doesn't have to be. What about other things that could be more important? What about love?" he asked her. Nicole raised an eyebrow. It was weird how she was the cynical and impassive one in the relationship while Phillip was more sensitive and caring than she was. Usually, it was the other way around.

"What are you saying, Phillip?" Nicole asked. Phillip realized that he had pretty much admitted to being in love with her. Embarrassed, he averted his eyes to the floor. Because it was true, he had fallen in love with Nicole. He had fallen in love with the woman his own father was married to. And he had thought falling in love with Belle had been bad. He seemed to have the worst luck with who he ended up falling love with.

"I don't know." he lied, "All I know is that you to do something about your marriage to my dad or we can't be together."

"Victor would be pretty angry at you if he knew how we felt about each other, wouldn't he?" Nicole asked sympathetically, "I know he's already furious at me for spending so much time with you."

"He'll get over it." Phillip said lightly, trying not to let his uneasiness show.

Nicole nodded in agreement, "He's noticed something going on but I don't think he really understands how serious it's gotten yet. He's been so busy with work, I hardly ever see him anymore. Thank God." she added under her breath.

Phillip quickly changed the subject after that, still feeling very distressed about his current relationship with Nicole. His father would be horrified when he found out how serious he and Nicole had gotten. He might lose his father's trust and approval forever. He looked over at Nicole, her blonde hair spilling over her shoulders, still slightly dishevelled from their previous exertions. Was she really worth it? He didn't know yet but he had a feeling he would figure out the answer to that question very soon.

  
  


Cassie and Nicole stopped at the Java Café after spending several hours shopping. It had been three days since Sami had moved in with Phillip and Cassie. Cassie and Sami had decided to call a truce and try to get along, at least for as long as Sami was going to be staying at Cassie and Phillip's house. Sami had also decided to make the most of the time she would be living with Cassie and the two of them had went shopping together. The weirdest part was, Sami was actually starting to enjoy Cassie's company.

They set down their bags and ordered coffee. They were so engaged in conversation, it took them a while to notice that Celeste had came and sat down at their table.

"Hey, Celeste." Cassie finally greeted her, giving Celeste a strange look. Celeste seemed to be looking right through them, a dark, haunted look on her face.

She finally looked at Sami and Cassie, her eyes wide with terror, "You must be very careful. I feel the evil. I had a vision. Oh and it was such a horrid vision!"

Sami and Cassie exchanged glances. Celeste's visions were famous in Salem, since they were rarely ever wrong, "What kind of vision?" Cassie asked.

"I saw you." Celeste looked from Sami to Cassie, "Both of you. You were covered in blood. You were dead." 

The light mood Sami and Cassie had managed to create completely dissipated at Celeste's words. Sami felt almost dizzy with fear. She looked frantically around the café and around the streets but there was no where to run. At that moment, she wished Lucas were there. She knew what he would have done. He would have wrapped his arms around her shoulders and told her that he would never let that vision come true. But he wasn't there.

Cassie was shaking visibly, "Let's go home, Sami." she managed to squeak out. They picked up their bags, said good-bye to Celeste and hurried back to Sami's car. Sami tried to concentrate on the roads but her mind was spinning. Celeste had a vision and in it she had seen both Sami and Cassie dead. Celeste's premonitions were almost never wrong. Sami tried as hard as she could to remember what had happened that night and who the killers were. But no matter how hard she tried, she couldn't remember a single thing.


	22. Chapter Twenty Two

Chapter Twenty-Two

  
  


It was early evening when Nicole opened the front door to the Kiriakas Mansion, preparing to leave. As soon as she opened the door, Cassie barged inside, her face pale and eyes wide. Nicole saw how shaken Cassie was so she shut the door and grabbed Cassie's arm before she could go any further.

"What happened to you?" Nicole asked, more out of curiosity than concern.

"I was at Salem Place a few hours ago. I saw Celeste and she said she had a premonition. She had a vision about me being dead." Cassie said in a near whisper, "Brady's here, right?"

"Yeah, he's in the other room." Nicole nodded towards the living room, "I was just on my way over to your house, to tell you the truth."

"Really?" Cassie paused, taking a moment to push her wavy hair out of her eyes, "Are you going over there to see Phillip or Sami?"

Nicole laughed at the idea of meeting Sami anywhere, "Phillip, of course. Well, he said he needs to go pick up Lucas as soon as I get there. Lucas' car is in the shop and he doesn't want to leave Sami alone. So, I'll stay with Sami while he goes and pick up Lucas."

Cassie nodded, "I have to go find Brady. See you later, Nicole." she rushed into the next room and Nicole looked inside the room just in time to see Cassie go up to Brady and wrap her arms around him.

"Brady, Celeste thinks that I'm going to be one of the next victims. She had this vision and I'm so scared-" Cassie began, breaking off, her breaths coming in loud gasps.

Nicole watched Brady stroke Cassie's hair as he hugged her tightly, "Celeste is wrong. You are going to be just fine. And I hope you know, you're staying here tonight."

"Are you sure Victor won't mind?" Cassie asked nervously.

"Victor might not exactly approve of our relationship but I think he'll understand. I don't feel right about leaving you alone back at your house. I've never felt like this about someone since Chloe. I'm not going to lose you." Brady told her. Nicole felt a twinge of jealousy, noticing how easy their relationship seemed to be. No screwed up marriages getting in the way, no complications. She wished it could be like that for her and Phillip.

Remembering that she was supposed to go see Phillip, she went out the door. As soon as she stepped outside, an icy cold feeling washed over her. Shivering, she quickened her pace. But the feeling that something awful was about to take place was a feeling she couldn't shake.

  
  


The killer watched from behind some bushes as Phillip closed the front door behind him and went down the front steps, heading towards his car. An evil smile flitted across the killer's face as Phillip started up the car and drove off into the darkness of the evening. They had been waiting for this. Now that Phillip was gone, they could go after their prey.

It was better than they ever had expected it to be. With both Nicole and Sami holed up in that house, they had the perfect opportunity to kill their next two victims in the same night. Then they would take care of Cassie Dimera and everything would be fine.

Traces of a scowl made their way onto the killer's face as they thought about the three woman they so desperately needed to destroy. If only they hadn't gotten in the way, then they wouldn't all have to die. The murder of Chloe Lane had been meticulously planned, like the murders of every other victim. When Sami had appeared that night, it had ruined everything they had so carefully set out. She would pay for what she did that night. Tonight, she would get what she deserved.

The killer knew they didn't have very much time before Phillip returned, so they would have to move quickly, especially since there were two women to take care of instead of one. But they felt confident they could pull it off. They knew which room the two women were staying in, their profiles were visible through the lowered shades. They crept along towards the back of the house.

The killer pulled the hood over their face and adjusted the hockey mask that had become the killer's signature feature. The black sweat suit and running shoes were also on. The killer left the bushes and snuck over to the back door. Taking keys out of their pocket, they grinned. They were glad they had managed to get a set of the keys to Phillip's home before coming tonight. But then again, they were always prepared. They almost chuckled when they thought about how Sami had left the loft to come stay here. They thought they could outsmart the killer. But all along, the killer had been the one that had outsmarted them.

  
  


"I win again." Nicole smiled triumphantly, throwing down her cards and collecting her winnings. Sami shook her head in disgust. They were both sitting on Phillip's bed at the house, playing poker and waiting for Phillip to return with Lucas.

"That's the third time in a row." Sami grumbled, as she began shuffling the cards once more, "I'm really starting to hate this game."

Nicole threw a little smirk in Sami's direction, "Maybe once Lucas and Phillip get here, we could play strip poker." she teased, watching as the other woman's face turned bright pink.

"Maybe not." Sami retorted, "What is it with you anyway? How can you chase after one guy when you're already married to the guy's dad?"

Nicole's smile faded, "Before with Lucas, Brady, Victor and so many other men in my life, it was a game. I was trying to make myself feel powerful. But it's not like that with Phillip. I really care about him and I don't feel like I have to be powerful when I'm around him. I just have to be myself. I don't want anything from him but his love. But don't change the subject. I think you started in on me because you don't want to talk about how you feel about Lucas."

"What do you mean?" Sami asked innocently, "Lucas is the father of my child and has been a great friend lately. But that's all. There is nothing going on between us."

"Oh, please." Nicole's eyes burned into Sami's eyes intensely, "Anyone with half a brain can see how you really feel. And how Lucas feels."

"You don't know what you're saying." Sami said hotly, embarrassment beginning to flare up as Nicole burst into laughter at her denial. Was she really that transparent? She let Nicole sit and laugh for a few minutes. Then she watched as Nicole's expression abruptly changed. Nicole stared at something behind Sami, her back rigid and her eyes wide with horror. Sami felt so much ice-cold fear penetrating through her that she was frozen, unable to turn around.

"We meet again, Samantha Brady. And I wouldn't scream if I were you because I wouldn't hesitate to blow both of your heads off. Do I make myself clear?" Sami recognized the gruff voice and she could tell from the look on Nicole's face she did too. But even though Sami tried frantically to place the voice, she couldn't. It was a male, that was all she could be sure of. Sami finally worked up her courage and slowly turned around.

Almost immediately, she knew that this had to be the second person she had seen, not the one with the knife. The one with the smile, the evil smile that was now covered by that horrible hockey mask. But she could make out the eyes, eyes that glittered pure evil and she realized how Maggie must have felt. She also recognized that the second man had been bulkier, the same shape as this man. The person with the knife had been very tall and thin.

The man had the gun aimed right at Nicole and he slowly moved over to Sami, pressing a knife into her neck with his free hand. Sami felt sick knowing that at any minute the man could slit her throat open and kill Nicole before she even hit the floor. He was going to kill them both if she didn't do something fast. She and Nicole might not get along but now Sami wanted Nicole to get out alive as much as she wanted to make it out with her own life.

Nicole's eyes met hers, looking to Sami for a plan. Sami and the killer were standing near the door to the hallway so there was no way Nicole could make a break for the hall without putting herself in a situation where she was very likely to get killed. But if Sami could distract the killer for at least a few seconds, maybe there was a chance. She swiftly extended her elbow and brought it back into the killer's ribs. The killer lost his composure for a second, doubling over slightly.

Sami tried to make a break for the hall, while Nicole, who was panicking slightly, turned around and locked herself in Phillip's bathroom. The killer grabbed Sami by the wrist and hit her angrily with the butt of the gun. Sami winced in pain as the killer brought the knife back into position on her neck.

"You are going to be sorry you did that." the killer growled, moving towards the bathroom with Sami in tow. Sami couldn't believe Nicole had been stupid enough to go into the bathroom. The only exit to the bathroom was through Phillip's bedroom and the killer had blocked off that exit now. He would eventually get the door open and then he would kill both her and Nicole. There was no way to escape now.


	23. Chapter Twenty Three

Chapter Twenty-Three

  
  


Nicole had known it was a dead end. She had been in Phillip's bathroom more than once and knew that there was no easy way out. But she had wanted so badly to get away from the killer that she had panicked. She hadn't been thinking straight. Now that she was stuck in the bathroom with the horrible man on the other side, she was going to have to think fast.

Sami had tried to help Nicole escape and might have succeeded if Nicole had used better reflexes. Nicole wanted to somehow help Sami but didn't know how. She couldn't do anything if she was dead. So she couldn't just stand in the middle of the bathroom. The killer was pounding on the door so loudly it was starting to make her head hurt. She had to get away from him.

"If you don't open the door right now, I'm going to kill Sami." he warned her.

"He'll kill me anyway, Nicole. Don't listen to him." on the other side of the door, the killer dug the knife deeper into Sami's neck, to the point where it was almost drawing blood. Sami held her breath, hoping that Nicole would listen to her. To her relief, Nicole did not open the door.

"I'm going to kill her." the killer tried again.

"Don't listen to him." Sami yelled.

"Shut your mouth!" the killer growled. Nicole took a deep breath and looked around the room trying to figure out what to do. She could open the door if she found something to attack him with. The killer continued pounding on the door and Nicole could hear the hinges starting to give. Not enough to time to find a weapon good enough to ward off the killer. She looked over to the small window and winced. She wasn't looking forward to what she had to do next but it was her last resort if she wanted to stay alive.

She went over and pushed the window open. There was a screen behind the window and she quickly yanked it off, throwing it to the ground underneath her. Looking out the window, she almost thought the idea of facing the killer would be less painful. She had never been afraid of heights but she had never jumped out a window on a two-story floor before either.

The window was small but she managed to squeeze her hips past the frame of the window. Once her entire body was dangling over the ground below her, she closed her eyes to calm herself. But once she heard the door beginning to give out under the pressure of the killer's body even more, she released her grip on the windowpane, letting herself fall. She landed hard on her right leg and she could heard the crack that came with her landing. Gritting her teeth, she tried to stand up but could not put any weight on her right leg. Dropping to the ground once more, she rolled underneath some bushes and waited.

The killer had finally gotten the door open and to his horror, the bathroom was empty. He immediately noticed the open window and rushed over to it, one arm still clamped around Sami. He looked down but didn't see Nicole. That meant she must have already ran off to call the police. He had to get Sami out of there right away. He couldn't let his perfect plan be destroyed. He rushed Sami out of the house and took her over to his car, which was parked across the street and hidden by the shadows of tall trees.

"I'm sure you'll be very happy when you see the great place I'm taking you to. It's where you'll spend your last moments. Where you should have died a long time ago." the killer told her. Sami's chest tightened and she tried not to let him see how scared she was. She wasn't going to give him that satisfaction.

Nicole rolled out from under the bushes and watched helplessly as the killer drove away with Sami. She lay on the grass for a few minutes, staring after the car which got smaller with every passing second. Finally, she pulled herself up, using the side of the house for support. She had to hop on her left foot and had only reached the middle of the lawn when another car pulled up. Her shoulders sagged with relief when she realized it was Phillip and Lucas. They got out of the car and hurried over to her.

"What the hell happened?" Phillip asked.

Nicole collapsed against him, "I jumped out the window. I think I broke my leg. The killer was here and he tried to kill us both. He has Sami."

Lucas actually felt his heart stop beating at Nicole's last words. It couldn't be true. This was not supposed to happen, the killers were supposed to get caught and then he and Sami were supposed to have ended up together. This wasn't fair.

"We have to find her." Lucas stated, his mouth set in a grim line. Nicole looked at him and had never seen so many emotions on one person's face- she could see fear, anger, hatred, love and determination in his eyes all at once. Phillip carried Nicole over to the car as Lucas called the police on his cell phone. Phillip got into the driver's seat and Nicole told him which way the killer had gone.

Lucas hung up a few minutes later, "Bo said they'd handle it and they'd find her." he laughed bitterly, "He told me to stay out of this and not make things worse. But he's the one that screwed everything up. If she had been with me, this might not have happened."

"Don't think about that right now." Nicole interrupted him, "You guys need to figure out where the killer went. Do you know anything that might give you an idea?"

"We already know that the killer seems to be a control freak and a perfectionist." Lucas began, "He seems to enjoy routines, like sending warnings on the PDA and then going after his chosen target. His murders always went perfectly except for this one."

Phillip stiffened, "I think I know what's he's going to do then!" Phillip exclaimed, "He's going back to the school!"

"Why would he do that?" Nicole asked.

"Chloe's murder must not have felt complete after Sami got away from them." Phillip explained, "Now, he wants to go back to the school and finish what he started."

Lucas thought about it for a minute, "Well, it's the only idea any of us can come up with so it's worth a shot." he said and Phillip then began speeding towards Salem High.

Nicole felt really sorry for Lucas and she could only imagine what he was going through. If it had been someone she loved that had gotten kidnapped by someone who was a deranged killer, she would be a wreck by now. She leaned against his seat and reached out to squeeze his arm reassuringly.

"I hope she gets away from him." Nicole told Lucas and he turned around to give her a small smile.

"I know she will." there was a hard, determined edge to Lucas' voice as he spoke, "She's a fighter and she isn't going to die on me. She's going to fight this bastard with every bit of strength she has. And she's strong, she's going to get away from him. Then Phillip and I are going to go find the monster and I am going to make him sorry he ever went near her. Despite the darkness, Nicole could make out the silhouette of a gun in Lucas' hand. She swallowed hard, praying that Sami would end up being fine so that Lucas wouldn't end up doing something that he would regret.


	24. Chapter Twenty Four

Chapter Twenty-Four

  
  


The gun was lodged into Sami's side as the killer continued driving towards his destination. He looked over at her pale face and decided it was time to reveal himself to her. He pulled off his mask and she looked at him in horror.

"I can't believe that you're the killer." she exclaimed, "How could you do this?"

Victor smiled evilly, "I didn't do it alone. Together, Nico and I managed to murder Abe, Jack, Maggie, Caroline, Belle, Roman and Chloe. And now it's your turn and Cassie and Nicole will die soon after you."

Sami glared at Victor, "You said you loved my grandmother. You brought her that bullet proof limousine and everything. You couldn't have really killed her.

"But I did." Victor's smiled faded, "It was a good cover-up, pretending I was trying to keep her alive when I knew that Nico was going to kill her. I don't have any regrets about it either. She knew too much and would have ruined everything if I had let her live. Besides, if she wasn't with me, then why should she have been with anyone? I did love her but seeing her with someone else for so long was painful."

Sami rolled her eyes, "Spare me. You don't know anything about pain. You don't have a heart. You killed all those people and you aren't even sorry. That's horrible."

"I did what I had to do." Victor stared straight ahead at the road in front of him, "But now I'm doing the town of Salem a favour. No one wants you around, Samantha. No one is going to miss you, no one really cares."

"That's not true." Sami shot back, "I have a son that loves me. And then there's my mom and L-" she stopped herself from saying Lucas' name. Remembering Lucas, she finally had to think about what he really meant to her. She loved him, she realized. She really loved him. Now that she knew how she felt, she was going to stay alive so that she could tell him how she felt the next time she saw him. After getting away from Victor, she wasn't going to wait any longer to tell him the truth. And she would get away from Victor.

She tried to keep calm as she began thinking of a way to escape. She knew Victor was a control freak and that he expected her to act a certain way. If she acted unpredictably, there was a chance she could get away from him. 

Victor finally reached the school grounds of Salem High and parked the car. Sami watched in surprise as he threw the gun in the glove compartment. She didn't know what he was doing but now that all he had for a weapon was a knife, she had a better chance of escaping. Victor pulled her out of the car and dragged her over to the grass field where he had murdered Chloe. Victor was smiling triumphantly, glad that he was finally going to give Sami what he deserved. He pushed her away from him slightly. He knew that Nico was waiting right around that corner if he didn't catch up to her in time. No matter how fast she ran, she was dead.

"Start running, Sami. Just like last time." Sami looked behind her, towards the street where she had ran to the time she had been escaping the killer. Victor clearly wanting to re-create the setting of Chloe's murder. Sami turned back to Victor, whose knife was clenched between his fingers with an expectant smile on his face. He wanted her to run in that direction but she wasn't going to give him what he wanted. Sami Brady had never been one to follow orders.

So Sami ran past him, towards Salem High. Victor stared after her, his eyes widening in surprise.

"You're going the wrong way!" Victor called after her and immediately began chasing her. Sami ran towards the school as fast as she could. Victor continued calling after her as she ran and she could tell he was beginning to get hysterical. She ran even faster until she reached the door to the school. She tried the door, only to find out that it was locked. She ran around to the other side of the building and spotted a fire escape ladder. She grabbed onto the rungs of the ladder and began climbing, knowing that Victor had his weight going against him and that she had the advantage if she started climbing. Victor had stopped shouting and was now completely focussed on catching up to Sami. By the time she reached the window, he had already began climbing the ladder.

She tried the window, which was also locked. She swung her foot off the ladder and then drove it through the window. Jagged pieces of glass burned into her skin but she slid her hand through the opening of the broken window to unlock the window without flinching. She was so scared that Victor was going to catch her that she didn't feel pain, only fear. Her cuts bled freely as she opened the window and slipped inside the building. After she was inside, she closed and locked the window behind let. Let Victor cut himself, he was so fat it was almost inevitable that he had to get at least one cut.

Sami ran down the vacant hallway, trying all the doors. Everything was locked. She bit her lip so hard it began to bleed when she made out the shape of a fire alarm. Quickly reaching out, she pulled on it and listened as the shrill ring sounded throughout the building.

Outside the school, Victor gritted his teeth when he heard the noise. That bitch thought she could away from him. He struggled to get through the window after unlocking it. He wished he had gotten Nico to take care of Sami. But Victor had been so upset that Sami had ruined his plans that he had decided he wanted the satisfaction of killing her. And Sami's lack of cooperation was ruining everything again.

He ran down the hall and saw a shadow flash by him. He realized that Sami was going up and down the halls, looking for an escape. He followed her, trying to keep silent. But Sami could feel his presence and it spurred her on. She began running faster, trying all the doors until she finally found one that opened. The room was big and empty, she realized it was a gymnasium. She saw another door and went through that one. Victor was right behind her.

Victor still had the knife as he stepped into the room. He shut the door behind him, feeling confident that he could finally destroy Sami. She had accidentally walked right into the weight room, where Victor could easily corner and kill her with a few quick thrusts of his knife. The same knife that had killed Chloe Lane and Belle Black.


	25. Chapter Twenty Five

Chapter Twenty-Five

  
  


Phillip pulled up next to the car that Victor had driven up to the school in. As soon as he and Lucas got out of the car, they could hear the fire alarm shrieking and the sound of fire trucks in the distance. Lucas looked up at the school, wishing he knew what was going on. He motioned for Phillip to come with him up to the school. Phillip closed all the doors of his car and locked them. Before closing the last door, he ducked his head in.

"We'll be back here as soon as we can." Phillip promised Nicole, who was still sitting in the backseat.

Nicole nodded, "Don't worry, I'm not going anywhere." she responded, watching as Lucas and Phillip raced over to the school. They found the front school doors locked but Lucas didn't want to waste any time. Phillip and Lucas began working frantically to break down the door. After ramming into the door several times, the door finally gave away and the two hurried inside.

Victor continued advancing on Sami, adrenaline rushing through him at the idea of killing her. After Sami, he would get rid of the other two women that were trying to destroy his family. He had planned to kill Nicole all along, when she began doubling her efforts to make Brady want her. Then she had went after Phillip and succeeded, hardening his resolve to kill her. He hadn't wanted to kill Cassie but she wasn't right for Brady, Chloe hadn't been either. He didn't want his son and grandson throwing away their lives. He was doing this for them.

Sami backed up another few steps and tripped over a weight lifting machine. She flew backwards, crashing onto an exercise mat. Victor lunged at her, landing on top of her with his knife still poised and ready. He began slashing at her with the knife and Sami instinctively raised her arm to ward off the knife. It made contact with her arm and she let out a loud scream of anger and pain. Victor just smiled and continued lashing out at her with the sharp knife.

Lucas heard the scream that he knew was unmistakably Sami. He followed the direction the sound had come from, hoping he could find her before it was too late.

Sami looked to the left and right of her, wanting to find something to protect herself with. She saw a small barbell lying next to her and reached for it while trying not to distract Victor. But he was so caught up in trying to kill her that he didn't notice she had moved at all. Her fingers squeezed the object tightly and without warning she brought the barbell up and hit Victor with it. It hit his head hard and he reeled back from the hard blow. Sami saw this as her chance to escape and brought her foot back, then drove it into the most sensitive area she could think of.

Victor let out a pained yelp and the knife flew out of his hands. It was only about thirty seconds after that when Lucas and Phillip came into the weight room. At the sight of his father rolling around on the floor while holding his hands between his legs, Phillip's jaw dropped open in shock. Lucas stared in shock for a few seconds too. It was not a position you ever expected to see the great and powerful Victor Kiriakas in.

Once the shock wore off, Lucas became gripped by an uncontrollable rage. This was the man who had been making Sami's life a living hell. And Lucas was going to keep the promise he had made to himself, the promise to make the killer pay. He brought one boot down over Victor's hands, giving him another hard blow in the exact spot Sami had. Victor let out a few more pained moans. Lucas shook his head and aimed his gun right for Victor's head.

"I'm going to make you rot in hell where you belong." Lucas told him, preparing to pull the trigger. But Phillip refused to just stand there and watch someone kill his father, even if Victor was a cold-hearted killer. He grabbed Lucas' arm and pulled it down, then froze in shock at the sound of the gunshot.

Victor's leg jerked in pain as the bullet sliced through his flesh. He rolled around on the floor for a few seconds longer, then passed out. Lucas noticed Sami lying a few feet away and his heart sank. Phillip flicked on the lights and Lucas took in the sight of her. Her hair was fanned out wildly behind her and he saw that her arms and one of her legs were bleeding. He rushed over to her and she barely managed to sit up. Now that the danger had passed, she felt so weak that all she wanted do was fall asleep. With Lucas' arms wrapped around her.

Lucas pressed her head against his chest, unable to believe that he had come so close to losing her again. Phillip was standing nearby, talking on his cell phone.

"That was too close, baby." he whispered in her ear, "I'm not going to let it happen ever again." Sami shuddered in his arms and he pulled her tighter.

"Is Nicole okay?" she asked suddenly, her voice low and breathless with exhaustion.

"She's fine. We think she broke her leg jumping out of a window but other than that she's perfectly okay." Lucas said softly, pressing one hand against her cheek, "I'm so sorry I let this happen. I'll make it to you, Sami. I'll give you anything you want."

Sami looked up at him, her blue eyes shining with affection for the man holding her, "I want you to kiss me." was all she said. Lucas didn't need any prompting. His kisses came hungry and fierce at first, trying to make himself believe that she really was right here, alive and wanting him to touch her. When he finally realized that she wasn't going anywhere, the kisses started becoming tender and slow. Sami was still shuddering in his arms, glad that Lucas was there and that he had saved her from Victor.

Phillip coughed, reminding the two that they weren't alone. Sami looked over Lucas' shoulder and gave Phillip and appreciative smile, "I'm glad you guys showed up when you did."

"It looks like you were doing fine on your own." Phillip replied, shaking his head in disbelief, "I still can't believe that my dad killed Chloe and Belle. I looked up to him so much."

"I'm sorry, Phil." Lucas said sympathetically but wasn't able to resist shooting a hateful scowl in Victor's direction, wishing he had been able to shoot the bastard in the head when he had the chance.

"Well, the ambulances and police should be here soon." Phillip informed Lucas and Sami, "Nicole had already called them from her cell in the car." he looked back over at his father and winced, "You just had to go and kick him right there, didn't you, Sami? That had to hurt."

"Actually, it didn't hurt me a single bit." Sami retorted and Phillip tried to smile.

"From now on, I'm going to make sure never to get on your bad side." Phillip told her and Sami looked almost proud of herself. That was when Phillip finally noticed the back of Lucas' shirt, which was drenched with blood.

"Jesus Christ, we had better get you to the hospital before you flood the whole school." Phillip exclaimed and Lucas then managed to take his mind off how good it felt to hold Sami and felt the wet, sticky feeling on his back. He reached behind him and gently took hold of her wrists. He examined them carefully, his eyes darkening as he noted each knife gash. She was going to need stitches and lots of them. His gaze travelled down to her right leg, which was covered with cuts from the glass.

"I hate him." Lucas seethed, "I hate him for hurting you."

"Lucas, it's okay. It doesn't hurt that much." Sami shifted slightly, accidentally causing one of the shards of glass to dig deeper into her leg. She inhaled sharply and Lucas could see the pain flickering across her face.

"The ambulance should be here soon. We should go outside." Lucas said, wrapping his arms around Sami, careful not to touch any of her cuts. As he lifted her off the ground, Sami stared at him in confusion.

"What are you doing?" she asked him.

"I'm carrying you." he replied, making it sound like it should have been obvious.

"I'm perfectly capable of walking." Sami countered, "You don't need to carry me, I'm perfectly fine. I think you're just looking for an excuse to touch me. I want you to put me down right now."

Lucas didn't let go of her, "Why do you always find some reason to argue with me, Sami?"

"Because I like arguing with you." Sami explained, a mocking smile on her face, "It turns me on. It always has. Didn't you know that, Lucas?"

Lucas grinned, glad that she was able to bounce back so quickly from being attacked by the Salem Serial Killer. Not many women were able to do that but it was one of the things about Sami that made him love her even more, "I think that's enough talking. You'll wear yourself out. Besides, even if it turns you on, arguing with me is not going to make me put you down. You couldn't pay me enough to let go of you."

Sami was glad he was being so firm with her about the issue. Even though she wouldn't admit it, there was no way she wanted Lucas to stop touching her. She clung to his neck as he and Phillip walked out through the school doors to meet the flashing lights of ambulances, police cars and fire trucks.


	26. Chapter Twenty Six

Chapter Twenty-Six

  
  


Phillip came into Nicole's room at the hospital. He sat down next to her on the bed and put one hand on the cast that now covered her right leg.

"How are you feeling?" Phillip asked.

"Other than my leg, I'm fine." Nicole responded, "The doctor had to go run some tests to see if there was any internal damage but I don't think there will be. He should be back any minute though."

Phillip opened his mouth to reply but the doctor chose that moment to walk into the room. He was holding several papers in his hands, "Well, Mrs. Kiriakas, everything seems to be in order other than your leg. But there is one other thing I think you should know."

"What is it?" Nicole questioned nervously.

The doctor sighed, "I'm very sorry for your loss and I hope you don't take this too hard. But you lost your baby."

Nicole stared and at the doctor blankly. Lucas walked into the room just as Nicole was saying, "Baby? What baby?"

"You didn't know you were pregnant?" the doctor gaped at the woman lying in the hospital bed, "You were roughly one month pregnant. You can't really tell me that you didn't know."

Nicole flinched and eyed Lucas out of the corner of her eye, "I didn't know. I've always been really irregular with my period and I only threw up a few times. And when I did, I didn't even consider the idea of it being morning sickness." when Nicole had thrown up, she had thought she had just been really hung-over.

The doctor talked to Nicole for a few more minutes and then left the room. Lucas, Nicole and Phillip lapsed into silence for a few minutes before Nicole spoke again.

"How did this happen, Lucas?" Nicole demanded, "We used protection."

Lucas raised an eyebrow, "The condom broke, remember?" when Nicole didn't say anything, Lucas shook his head in disbelief, "You didn't notice, did you?"

"No." Nicole said in a small voice. Lucas shook his head a few more times.

"I'm going to see if they're finished giving Sami all those stitches." Lucas told them, "I'll leave you two alone." Lucas left the room and Phillip turned to Nicole. But then Tek came into the room, a big grin on his face.

"John and I just went over to investigate the Kiriakas Mansion. We found all the files for every message from the killer that was sent to Bo's PDA in Victor's computer. He had them password protected but I managed to use a special code to break in. And their butler confessed to overhearing Nico and Victor talking about the killings on night. We tracked down Nico and he's in jail now." Tek's beeper suddenly went off, so he stepped out of the room abruptly.

"What is going on?" Nicole spoke up and Phillip realized she didn't know that Victor was the killer.

"Victor is the killer." Phillip told her, "He's going to be thrown in jail right after he gets the..... medical attention he needs." Phillip finished. Nicole saw the shame in Phillip's eyes and stroked his arm comfortingly.

"I wish it didn't have to be your father. But I know how it feels to have a father that's a criminal. It's really hard but I'm going to be here for you." Nicole told him, glad that she had the chance to stand by him like he had stood by her when Brady thought she had killed Chloe. Phillip smiled gratefully at her.

"Thank you. But if we look on the bright side, you won't have to divorce him. He'll definitely get the death penalty for everything he's done and then all of his money we'll be yours."

"All of the money will be ours." Nicole corrected him. Now that Victor would soon be out of there lives, she and Phillip could actually be together. Phillip leaned in and kissed her softly on the lips just as Brady and Cassie entered the room.

"Sorry for interrupting." Brady said, looking slightly embarrassed. He shifted uncomfortably and stared at the ground, "But I heard the news and I had to come over here right away. I heard how my grandfather tried to kill you and Sami tonight, Nicole. And I wanted you to know how sorry I am for accusing you of being the killer. That wasn't fair, you were my friend and I should have given you the benefit of the doubt."

"Thank you for apologizing." Nicole responded stiffly, still a little angry at Brady for accusing her, "I'll try and think of some way you can make it up to me."

"I guess that's fair." Brady agreed, sitting down on the bed next to Phillip. Cassie sat down next to Brady.

"I saw Lucas waiting outside Sami's hospital room while the doctors finishing stitching her up." Cassie confided in the three people, "You can tell that he really loves her. I bet he'll propose to her tonight." Brady nodded in agreement.

"I don't think so." Phillip argued, "It's too soon. He'll hold off a little longer."

"I'm with Phillip." Nicole jumped in.

"Are you so sure you'd be willing to bet money?" Cassie asked, her eyes glinting mischievously, "Why don't we all bet one hundred dollars."

Nicole looked at Cassie with disdain, "Of course, I'm willing to bet money. But why don't we make it more like a thousand dollars?"

"A thousand?" Brady repeated. Before he could anything else, Cassie put her hand over his mouth.

"It's a deal." Brady's eyes widened, "Calm down, Brady, there's no way we can lose this bet."

"Why don't you go see how Lucas and Sami are doing?" Phillip suggested, "I'll stay here with Nicole."

Cassie and Brady both knew Phillip was trying to get rid of them so he could be alone with Nicole. They left the room obligingly and spotted Lucas still standing outside Sami's room. Bo was walking towards Lucas so they sat down in the waiting room chairs next to Rex, Mimi, Will and Shawn.

  
  


"I thought I'd find you here." Lucas turned to see Bo standing next to him. Hope was standing next to Bo, her arm wrapped around his waist encouragingly.

Bo cleared his throat, "I owe you an apology for my actions the other day at that hotel. It was wrong of me to separate you and Sami. But I was afraid that you were putting your needs before my niece's safety and I didn't want that. I hope you understand."

"I wasn't doing that at all." Lucas retorted, "I was getting her out of Salem so that the killer couldn't go after her anymore. You were the reason she came back to Salem and got attacked."

Bo winced, "I know. And if there is anything I can do to make this up to you, I'll do it."

"I'll have to give that one some thought." Lucas told him, enjoying seeing the police commander squirm, "But if I hadn't been around tonight, Sami might not even be alive. And then you would have to blame yourself-"

"All right, that's enough." Bo was beginning to look very frustrated, "What do you want, a medal?"

"That would be a start." Lucas shot back and Bo's mouth dropped open. Bo realized that he was coming very close to lashing out at Lucas because of the stressful night he was having and stopped himself.

"That can be arranged." Bo told him, "You and Phillip both deserve a medal for acting so bravely tonight. I'll go down to the police station tomorrow and start making preparations for the ceremony. Oh, look, Hope, there's John. I have to go talk to him about Victor." Bo and Hope walked away and Lucas went back to waiting for Sami to be finished with her stitches.

A doctor came out of the room and smiled at Lucas, "We just finished. You're free to go in and see her now."

"Thank you." Lucas said, brushing past all the doctors who were leaving the room. Sami's eyes lit up when he stepped into the room and he sat down on the bed next to her. He involuntarily clenched his jaw at the sight of the stitches spread over her arms.

"Does it hurt?" he asked, his fingers skimming over the stitches gently. Sami shook her head.

"The doctor gave me a shot and it's gotten rid of almost all the pain." Sami told him.

"I still can't believe I almost lost you." Lucas whispered, "If we hadn't gotten there in time or if Nicole hadn't jumped out that window when she did......." he couldn't bring himself to finish the sentence, "I don't think I would have been able to handle losing you."

"Lucas, I promised myself I'd tell you something when I got away from Victor. I promised that I'd tell you as soon as I got the chance." she took a deep breath, "I love you."

Lucas couldn't believe she had just said the one thing he had wanted to hear her say more than anything else. He wondered for a moment if he was dreaming but he knew he wasn't. Sami felt her heart banging against her chest. His silence was so unnerving. She was afraid that he would laugh at her and tell her that he didn't feel the same way. She was afraid he would walk out of the hospital room and never come back. She was afraid what she had with him would fall apart like it had with Austin and Brandon.

"And I love you. I love you so much." he said softly and Sami could finally breathe again, "I wanted to tell you for so long but I couldn't until after the killer was caught. I didn't want to make things harder for you if you didn't feel the same way." his words almost echoed Sami's thoughts and she saw how insecure they both were.

"But I do. The truth is, you mean everything to me." she responded. Lucas' eyes were moist as he fumbled around for something in his pocket. He pulled out a jewellery box and opened it to reveal a large diamond ring.

"I've had this for a while now, I kept it with me. I was waiting for a night like this when we were together and you finally returned my feelings. I want-" the lump in his throat was making it difficult for him to finish, "Samantha Brady, will you marry me?"

Sami nodded, too overcome by her happiness and love for Lucas to speak. He slid the ring onto her finger and she smiled up at him, tears shining in her eyes.

"God, you're beautiful." he murmured. Sami looked up at him, seeing his eyes moist from unshed tears, wearing an expression of unconcealed affection that mirrored her own and she realized that he was beautiful too. He pressed his lips against hers, while Brady and Cassie watched outside the door gleefully.

"Phillip and Nicole owe us a shitload of money now." Cassie whispered to Brady and he nodded, not taking his eyes off Sami and Lucas. They continued to watch Lucas and Sami until Sami began tugging at Lucas' shirt, attempting to pull it off him.

"I think we should go now. I really don't want to witness a repeat of what happened on that counter." Cassie stated and Brady grinned.

"Shawn told me all about it. Who'd you hear it from?" Brady asked.

"Rex." Cassie rolled her eyes, "I think that kitchens counters are going to be forever associated with Lucas and Sami now."

"I think so too." Brady agreed, taking Cassie's hand and pulling her down the hallway, giving Lucas and Sami their privacy, "But we should go tell everyone the good news."

Sami ran her tongue along Lucas' lower lip teasingly, nipping and sucking on the tender flesh of his lips. Lucas' hands slid underneath her hospital gown, his fingers tracing the contours of her bra before slipping his fingers between the crack between her breasts. Her moaned was stifled by the intense pressure of Lucas' mouth against hers. After a few more minutes, she pulled away.

"We can't do this here." she reminded him.

"You're right." Lucas agreed, "I guess this means I'm going to have to take you home. I'll help you get dressed in the bathroom and then we'll go back to your apartment and start unpacking." he winked after saying unpacking and Sami giggled. She hadn't even gotten the blankets off when Lexie stepped inside.

"I, um, I wanted to see how you were doing." Lexie stammered. She didn't like Sami very much but her curiosity had gotten the best of her. She had already been down to Nicole's hospital room.

"I'm fine." Sami said shortly.

"That's good." Lexie lowered her voice a little bit, "Victor is still down in surgery, you know. One of the doctors told me he's going to lose at least one testicle, if not both. According to the doctor, they're as big as tennis balls."

Sami stared at Lexie in shock, "I didn't think I kicked him that hard." Lucas knew she must not have seen what he had done to Victor, so he didn't say a word. But it had to have been a team effort, it couldn't just have been Sami alone.

"Thanks for the update, Lexie." Lucas said, "Now, Sami is just going to get dressed and we're leaving." before he could move, Lexie stopped him.

"You can't leave for another two hours. The medicine hasn't completely worn off yet." Lexie quoted the doctor she had just talked to.

"Fine." Lucas grumbled, pretending to back down. Lexie left the room and Lucas turned back to Sami but not before casually flipping the bird out into the hallway.

"I saw Brady and Cassie here earlier today. We'll get them to help me sneak you out of here." Lucas whispered in a low voice. Before Sami left the hospital bed, he was unable to resist giving Sami one last lingering kiss. He heard someone enter the room but ignored them. Until he heard the horrified shriek.

"What is going on here?" Kate squealed angrily, "This is horrible. First I walk in on Phillip and Nicole making out in Nicole's hospital bed and now this. This is my worst nightmare, I cannot believe this is happening."

"Believe it." Lucas shot back, "And you better get used to it, because Sami and I are getting married." Kate's eyes widened and she let out an enraged scream before stalking out of the hospital room. Lucas looked over at Sami, a sheepish smile on his face.

"I'll guess we'll have to work on the two of you getting along, now won't we?" Sami was silent for a minute and he almost expected her to argue.

"I'll try and put up with her but only for your sake." she told him, "But hurry up and go find Cassie and Brady so they can help get me out of here."

Lucas laughed at her enthusiasm and left the room to go find Brady and Cassie. He was in a better mood than he had been in a long time. Victor was definitely going to get the death penalty for his crimes and he would never be able to go near Sami again. And he had Sami, the one person that meant more to him than anyone else.


End file.
